


Among the KC Men in Black

by Inukisama, KailynMei



Series: Dimensional Mayhem [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Adult!Katsuya, An AI discovering Feelings, Artificial Intelligence, Badass!Katsuya, Dad!Isono, Existential Crisis, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Innuendo, M/M, Pairings and characters may be added later on, Past Katsuya/Mai, Past Relationship(s), Questions about Feelings, Slow Burn, puppyshipping - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-08
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2018-12-25 08:42:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 53,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12032262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inukisama/pseuds/Inukisama, https://archiveofourown.org/users/KailynMei/pseuds/KailynMei
Summary: If Jonouchi Katsuya had been told that one day, he would become part of the super cool and creepy shadows of Kaiba, he would have laughed and thought nothing of it. But now that Isono offers him a job as Mokuba's personal bodyguard, he realises his life will change drastically - and not particularly on the good side.Set between the end of Duel Monsters and Dark Side of Dimensions.French translation by KailynMei available in Part 2 of the series.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there! Inukisama speaking :)
> 
> I hope you'll enjoy this fic, originally created after a prompt from my friend KailynMei. I began writing it as a crackfic, but it soon appeared that my characters deserved much more than that XD  
> I'll try updating as often as possible, but I apologize in advance for irregularities in publishing new chapters, because I have a heavy schedule to work with.
> 
> Please keep in mind that English is not my mother tongue, so mistakes may remain here and there. Don't hesitate to comment, I'd be very glad to have feedback on my work :)
> 
> Enjoy!

**PROLOGUE**

Jonouchi Katsuya tugged at his shirt collar nervously, glancing left and right to make sure there was no one in the corridor with him. He had tried to dress smart for the occasion, but the fabric felt unusual on his skin and itched. Not to mention he sweated too much for comfort. He could not stop feeling wrong and out of place. What in heavens was he doing in KaibaCorp. He almost regretted his presence.

With his luck, he would see the tell-tale white coat around the corner and be doomed to a lifetime of humiliations for even being in the bloody building. He did not want that. But his need for a job outmatched his personal wishes and had him here, so he sucked it up and remained seated in his goddamned chair, waiting for Isono to show up.

He had been surprised to receive a phone call from Kaiba's personal assistant and bodyguard. The fact that the man even had his number in the first place, nearly freaked him out, but he supposed it was only natural. Jonouchi swore that Isono was a frigging man in black, with all the gadgets and super abilities that came with the job. For someone who could hack satellites, launch international events without breaking a sweat, and save Mokuba from kidnappers twice a week in ten minutes beat, finding a phone number was merely a stroll in the park with lilies and bunnies.

Back to topic, Isono had offered Jonouchi a job. An actual, serious, well-paying job, with complete healthcare insurance and free tickets to Kaibaland once a year. The young man had searched for the catch, but in the end, he decided he would not look a gift horse in the mouth. Kaiba's lapdog was as versed to jokes as his master, only funnier. That meant the catch had to be minimal, or at least it would be clearly stated beforehand. No surprise there. And the paycheck was phenomenal, so Jonouchi had accepted on the spot anyway. His head spun with all the possibilities this sum could give him, beginning with a new, clean apartment in a nicer district, and real, fresh food three times a day, everyday. Those alone justified any risks.

He did not really know what Isono would need him for, though. Doorman, maybe? Or a handy job? Surely not something that involved too much brains. The CEO of KaibaCorp would have to sign his contract, and that douche would undoubtedly have a heart-attack thinking he would give a high position to the one he called a mutt, a good-for-nothing street rat. So no engineering for Jonouchi, and he could not do that anyway. Maybe he would be given a testing task? Now that would be awesome! Testing new _Duel Monsters_ apparatus would be a dream come true for the duelist.

The sound of approaching footsteps snapped him out of his fantasies, and he saw Isono come down the corridor to him, his hands behind his back, all straight and serious and intimidating. Jonouchi scrambled to his feet, hesitating on the greetings he should be addressing to the other male. But the man in black spared him the effort, as he raised his hand to him.

"Good morning, Mr Jonouchi," he said formally as they shook hands, "I'm glad you could come so quickly."

"Morning, Isono, and yeah, no problem. I'm glad you called me, you really save me here."

Katsuya tried his best to sound polite. He did not want to spoil everything with his usual bad mouth, and swore to himself he would not say anything disrespectful as regards Kaiba. As strong as his dislike for the CEO was, he was going to be working for him soon, if Isono approved of him. He had to play nice.

"I'm most happy to be of use," the bodyguard replied evenly, "but think nothing of it. I saw your potential and I merely wish to improve the skills and efficiency of Director Kaiba's staff, and it appeared that your profile is just what I was looking for. This way, please."

He motioned towards a door further down and headed them to a plain-looking office with very simple decoration. He sat down and invited the young man to do the same. When both were seated in across from each other, Isono spoke up.

"I will be straight to the point, Mr Jonouchi," he declared with an unwavering gaze, "I didn't think you were cut for KaibaCorp until recently."

This, Katsuya could understand pretty easily. He did not think he was either. Yet here he was, having an interview with Kaiba's shadow.

"I really paid attention to your skills when I saw you during the Battle City tournament," the older male continued, "and witnessed your resistance and courage in front of danger. Now mark my words, courage is not a quality I look for in itself, but you displayed a particular aspect of it. In short, you showed to be quite competent in the field of physical, hand-to-hand combat and rescuing. That I respect, and searched for in candidates for a very long time."

Jonouchi dreaded the way it was getting to. Isono went on.

"I dug in your past, and I found that you come from a poor background and belonged to a gang some years ago. Therefore, I assume that you have some deep knowledge of the underground world, or at least you had a taste of it. You have quick reflexes, reckless but generous behavior, great stamina, and instinctive reactions. You're fit and healthy, sturdy as an oak, and your hits always land. You prove to be faithful and protective towards your friends and relatives, trustful when need be, and brave. And to complete your profile, you know Director Kaiba and Mr Kaiba, and they know you. Maybe you're not on the best of terms, but I guess you're as close as friends, considering Director Kaiba's relations. You even went so far as to save Mr Kaiba a couple of times, which I am very grateful for and find the best reference for the job."

Outraged to have been searched at first, Jonouchi short-circuited when he heard Isono mention him, Kaiba, and friends, in the same sentence. He almost burst out laughing at the thought. Him, be friends with moneybags? When hell freezes over. But he did not express his thoughts out loud. He was not the man with a gun at his belt, and he knew from experience that his interviewer was very touchy when it came to his beloved boss. So he schooled his features as best he could.

"What kind of job do you want me for?" he finally asked.

Isono quirked a brow, as if surprised the blonde had not guessed yet, then hummed pensively.

"Given your record and qualifications, I think it's obvious, Mr Jonouchi. Under my direct supervision, you could become a very valuable member of the Kaiba's close security staff. It's kind of a multitasking type of position, as Director Kaiba wants his personnel to excel in many things, but..."

"Wait," Katsuya suddenly blurted incredulously, "you mean you want me to become like you? A..." He searched for the adequate term. Lapdog was injurious and did not cut it. Neither did bodyguard. After some seconds, he eventually found something, "A man in black?"

Isono's brows shot up at that. Man in black? What was this? The blonde flushed and tripped on his words to explain.

"It's just that with your black suit and dark glasses, and your freaking poker face, you look like those men in black from the movie. They're cool, mind me, they have all these gadgets and stuff, and they drive a nice car, too. I..."

"I understand," the elder interrupted evenly, "I know the film. Mh," he hummed, "even if I've never thought about us like that, I must say it can be a pretty accurate comparison. At least, on the cool side."

Was it an attempt at humor? It was difficult to tell, since those frigging glasses hid Isono's eyes, but the man's mouth seemed to have twitched and curled for a fleeting moment. Or maybe Katsuya had imagined it.

"Anyway, to answer your question, yes. I'd like to hire and train you as one of us, meaning I'd teach you everything I know to become Mr Kaiba's shadow, much as I'm Director Kaiba's."

"Oh. Wow, that's..."

Incredible? Impossible? Creepy as fuck? Jonouchi did not know anymore. His face must have shown his internal debate, however, for the other let out a tiny chuckle. He started at that. First he was offered one of the strangest and most dangerous jobs in the whole universe, and now, he heard Isono chuckle. Next, he would find Kaiba behind the door, waiting for him in a frilly neon pink suit with a giant lollipop in hand and a huge bright smile... A shudder crept up his spine. No, that was too frightening an idea, and he shoved it far away. Instead, he focused on formulating a response.

"That's a lot to take in, in fact," he managed to say. _Bingo!_ He patted himself mentally on the back, proud of his answer.

Isono nodded comprehensively.

"I figure. Unfortunately, I'll need an immediate answer from you. Mr Kaiba is in dire need of an assistant, to relieve both Director Kaiba and me, and you'll need a lot of work to become decent in the position you'll be given. You'll need to begin first thing tomorrow morning, if you want to be ready in a few months, preferably before the big launch of Kaibaland USA..."

"Er, hold on," Jonouchi interjected once more, "how can you be so sure I'll say yes?"

The man lowered his head slightly, just so that his eyes were partly visible behind the dark glasses. Did he ever take them off to sleep?, Katsuya wondered. Isono's gaze was knowing. He had no doubt. He knew the blonde needed the job.

"If you don't think you're up to this tremendous task," he said in a challenging way, "maybe I'll let you go back to your life, Mr Jonouchi."

And that was how Isono got him. It was common knowledge that Jonouchi Katsuya never backed off from a challenge. This one, much to his astonishment, got him to be a new recruit in the secret body of Kaiba's men in black. Without Kaiba knowing about it until he had to sign the contract, of course. Man, the blonde would have loved to see the douchebag's face at that instant. Instead, his exemplar of the contract had come in the mail with an obvious scratch, almost a hole, created by a costly fountain pen where the CEO had ratified his official hiring as "security guard".


	2. Chapter 1

******CHAPTER 1**

During the first month of his training, Katsuya had to master different martial arts in record time. Not that he could not do it, but his mentor was a frigging _monster_ in forming him. Isono fought like a merciless, berserk warrior, only pausing every now and then to make sure his apprentice survived his harsh treatment. Jonouchi was expected to follow his rhythm, anyway, if he wanted to meet the expectations that were placed upon him. That did not mean the blonde did not suffer and get bruised everywhere. Nothing broken, though, it would have been too long to heal. But it still hurt.

Then, the month ended and his first paycheck arrived, and well... Katsuya finally found some worth in his painful days of training. Isono even praised him a little, saying that he was a natural at hand-to-hand combat, and a tough nut. This, coupled with the hugest amount of money he had ever earned in his life, was enough boost for the blonde to surpass himself and expand his fighting skills and stamina, much to the pride of the other man.

Jonouchi had not caught a single glimpse of Kaiba, something he was most grateful for. He saw no one else than Isono, and he was perfectly fine with it. He found that he liked the company of the elder man, once he had understood the bodyguard hid a soft and caring character behind his dark glasses. He fought like a beast, but after each session, he would tend to the blonde's wounds like a fussy mother hen. He always had encouraging gestures and words whenever his apprentice felt down. Katsuya now saw why his mentor was so respected by both Kaibas. He was an assistant, a bodyguard, a cook, a housekeeper, a father-like figure, the voice of reason, all in one. And he was brilliant in his roles.

During the second month of Katsuya's training, hell really began. It consisted of what his mentor called "schooling himself". In other words, he had to learn how to speak and act posh, develop an impenetrable poker face, and never, ever blow a fuse in front of anyone considered important. That included Seto Kaiba, of course. For the occasion, Isono had secretely coded an AI with the appearance of the CEO, and gave him a plethora of barbs and casual insults that had been uploaded in his database according to the actual man's behavior. And when it came to the bodyguard in training, the not-real-but-still-jackass-Kaiba was especially vicious.

"Jonouchi Katsuya," Isono first introduced them, "this is IKaiba, created especially for your training."

"Huh?"

At first, Jonouchi had not understood. A virtual Kaiba? Was the real one not enough misery already? The hologram grunted and crossed his arms over his chest, eyeing the blonde up and down condescendingly.

"Really, if not for Isono, I wouldn't waste my time. Even as an AI, I can see that no one with brains would spend more than a few seconds in your company, mutt. A street dog will never turn into a decent human being, even with a uniform."

Katsuya saw red. He bolted and tried to wring the jerk's neck, only for him to crackle and disappear in a mocking laugh.

"Seriously, how stupid can you be," the unreal-but-still-copy-of-Kaiba threw at the blonde, "I'm an _hologram._ You cannot touch me, and that's really a blessing, in a way. I wouldn't dare think be touched by your dirty paws, mutt, I might fear your single digit IQ would affect mine."

"Shut up, moneybags," Jonouchi growled, "yer one ta talk when all ye can do is speak. Yer lucky yer pretty face can't be rearranged, or ye would be a fucking Picasso."

"Oh? I'm impressed you have an ounce of culture in you. But I guess even an idiot has access to the internet in the slums. Did the nerd gang borrow you their connection, for you to get at least some famous names into your thick skull?"

And that was the beginning of a nightmarish couple of months. Katsuya had never been one to let insults fly over his head and not react when so blatantly treated like crap, but for the sake of his nice income, he had to. For long hours on end, he had to repeat "Yes, sir," in an obedient and professional tone, to a virtual version of the CEO, who did not refrain himself from shoving his face lower than dirt. These sessions were done alone, just the two of them, Isono sending them a last sorry gaze before he closed and locked the door behind himself, only to return when they were finished. He took in Jonouchi's miserable expressions without a word, though he burnt to console his young trainee. The blonde had to make himself immune to those things, even more so when they were the most difficult aspect of the job for him. If the former yankee learned to take Seto Kaiba's scathing comments without so much as a twitch of his mouth, he would be invincible. Unfortunately, he had to learn it the hard way, and on his own.

Jonouchi put up with the regular humiliation with enraged stubbornness. He knew Isono made this for him to be irreproachable when he was in front of the actual, in-flesh CEO, but damn, was that hard to attain. After years of wanting to punch the jerk's teeth in, now he had to be all nice and become his perfect lap _dog_. Ugh. Speak about irony. The endless possibilities this opened to mock him were nauseating, like the scathing comments threw out at him. The blonde prayed every deities he knew for his real boss to have mellowed somewhat, but he doubted moneybags would do anything else than taunt him, until he snapped and got fired for beating up his high-strung ass. Katsuya swore to himself he would never give him the pleasure of seeing him kicked out for this, and tried his hardest to listen to Isono's instructions and reining his temper.

Little by little, the former yankee started sharpening his gaze and straightening his posture. He gained some more muscle thanks to his still ongoing physical training, and he gained more seriousness – one might say _adulthood_. He improved his way of speaking, dropping his usual accent in favour of a more polished one. He even managed to copy his virtual boss's signature brow-quirking when insulted. After painful weeks of banters, debates, and a load of insults, Katsuya succeeded in addressing IKaiba in a more or less refined, not too servile manner, which earned him his first surprised comment.

"Well," the AI muttered one day, "it seems you can finally speak like an average human. Never guessed you had it in you, mutt."

This simple, not so nice comment, was in the hologram's mouth a stunning sort of compliment. Instead of jumping up and down, however, the blonde simply bowed respectfully and replied, a small lips tugging at his lips, "Thank you, Director IKaiba, I will continue to improve myself." He patted himself mentally on the back for this professional answer.

When Isono got wind of this success, he declared that his young trainee's nightmare with the AI was over. Nothing compared to the relief Jonouchi felt at that very moment. Then, he continued his training and passed the standing-upright-without-moving-for-hours test with flying colors. He received his third paycheck as one of KC employees, and let himself dream of moving to a decent apartment next month. Things finally got brighter for him.

Until Isono dropped the biggest of bombs.

"I'm impressed, Katsuya," the elder said at the end of his fourth month, "you completed the first and toughest term of your training, a month ahead of schedule no less. I think congratulations are in order."

Isono and he had come to use first-name addresses earlier during the third month or so, and a strange friendship had woven between them. Katsuya liked his mentor, and Isono liked his hot-headed trainee like a younger brother. He had never doubted the former yankee would be a great asset to KC, and he had never been so proud of his protegee. But now, serious business was about to begin.

They were enjoying lunch outside, in a nice cafe far from KC tower. Passers-by were skidding past them in the sun of late May, and Jonouchi was wolfing down his gargantuan meal. This was the first time he could treat himself to food in a restaurant that was not run-down, and he made the best of it. Isono was watching him while sipping on his black coffee, slightly amused at his youthful enthusiasm. Then he schooled himself and spoke up.

"Now, I can finally entrust you with actual functions at the company, and after some complementary sessions revolving around your position, as well as giving you sensible information to be able to fit into your new job as quickly as possible, you will finish your training directly on the field."

Katsuya hummed, careful not to speak with his mouth full. He looked up at the serious expression of his mentor, swallowed, and asked, "Will I begin as Mokuba's bodyguard then?"

Isono gave him the briefest of glances, but the blonde caught the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. He straightened himself unconsciously, ready to take whatever he had to. The elder took a breath before answering, "Not exactly. Before that, you will have to prove yourself to Director Kaiba."

Oh. So that was what it was all about. Jonouchi snorted.

"So we'll be both on duty with Kaiba? Hardly a thing after what IKaiba made me go through."

He did not bother using the respectful term "Director" with Isono, who let it pass. But the elder grimaced, albeit for a whole different reason.

"No," he replied, "I'll be with Mister Kaiba, while you'll be with Director Kaiba. Alone."

"Oh," the blonde huffed derisively, "well, I've been trained specifically for that, so it won't be as much as a formality to this point."

"I'm sure," Isono affirmed, "the problem is that, well, you may have seen that you were employed as security guard on your contract, yes?"

"That's what I am, in a way. Plus some other qualifications that haven't been specified."

_What's this conversation getting at?_ , he wondered.

"That's what I'm talking about. For Director Kaiba, you're not to go further in KC tower, than the entry hall. He thinks you're a security guard in the simplest way."

Katsuya's brain screeched to a halt at that. Squinting, he noticed that, for the first time since he knew the man, Isono was showing slight signs of nervousness. He gulped harder, realization hitting him like a ton of bricks.

"So, basically, you're telling me...?"

"Yes," his mentor breathed uneasily, "I lied to Director Kaiba about you, so that I could train you without him knowing. And he doesn't know you're due to begin as his temporary shadow in a few days."

The blonde gaped at him for a few seconds, not knowing what to say. That was... crazy. Isono was mad, he had seriously lost it. Kaiba hated his guts, for God's sake! And he hated surprises. So having one Katsuya Jonouchi landing on his doorstep without short notice was sure to make hell break loose. WHat was his mentor thinking?

"And... and Mokuba?," he managed to stutter.

"Mister Kaiba doesn't know the specifics of this arrangement, although he was informed that a shift was to take place. Forgive me, Katsuya," he apologised, taking the incredulous expression of his trainee, "but knowing Director Kaiba, it was the only way I could manage to put you there and give you a chance to prove yourself to him. To become a real, entitled employee of KC. If it can make you feel any better, we both put our necks out here. It's a gamble I'm ready to make, though, I'm sure you'll succeed in gaining his trust."

Jonouchi did not believe this would work, although he had to give credit to his mentor. The man knew the Kaibas better than anyone else, maybe even better than the Kaibas themselves, so maybe he had seen something the blonde had not. Still, this was crazy to bet his career on it. Seto Kaiba hated to be fooled, especially by those he trusted.

Nevertheless, Katsuya had to progressively accept the idea altogether. He would not disappoint Isono, for all he had done to him, and for he had gone so far as lying to his boss, the man he most respected in the universe. He felt the pressure of both their hopes on his shoulders, and squared them to take on the challenge like a champ. With a curt nod, he showed his approval, and resumed his eating with renewed motivation.

_Prepare yerself, moneybags, ye'll never know what's come at ye until yer knocked out! The mutt will show ye what he's made of!_


	3. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

Seto Kaiba was a man used to being obeyed. Obeyed, and feared. No one was any match for him, in any field. Everything he did had to be no less than perfect. Therefore, he demanded the same level of perfection of those working for him. He loathed incompetence, and he abhorred anything that could be passed as weakness. He only accepted the best of men in his company, even more so when it came to his more private circle. Isono had had a very hard time to enter that circle, and stepping out was far easier and trickier than anything existing on this plane. Seto almost considered his assistant as the closest he had to a friend, which meant the world in his strange conception of things.

So when said friend entered his office in Kaiba Mansion one early morning, stating that he would get a temporary bodyguard for some time, the elder Kaiba got in the foulest of moods. Not only did he just get informed on the day of said shift without any prior notification, he had also not been asked for permission and had the situation thrown at him. He had no idea of who would tail him from now on, and felt the whole thing get out of his control, which he hated with a burning passion. Seto Kaiba _never_ lost control. Not even to Isono.

The CEO was seething at his stoic right-hand man. He was furious at everything. At Isono for this bold and hugely wrong decision, at the idiots who tried to kidnap Mokuba on a daily basis, resulting in Isono having to deal with security himself, and at the fool that would be replacing his closest associate. Seto was sure the burden he would be dragging did not, even remotely, show an ounce of what his best and most faithful employee possessed. Isono was unique and irreplaceable. Which enraged him further.

"And pray tell, _now_ that you deem appropriate to reveal this trivial piece of information to me, whom I will have the _pleasure_ to be protected by, Isono?," he asked dryly, venom dripping from every word.

His employee gulped imperceptibly and nodded.

"Of course, Director Kaiba, sir. He is a young trainee I have selected over hundreds of profiles, to assist me in protecting Mr Kaiba. As he is still a rookie in training however, I thought it better to have him taking his functions by your side, as you are, well..."

"As I am less likely to get kidnapped on his first day," the elder Kaiba deadpanned, frowning. "Why didn't you tell me this before? And don't think I didn't notice the way you tried avoiding the question of who he is."

Isono took the rebuff silently. He knew his boss would not like it. He tried to stall for time, hoping everything will go into motion soon enough. He was waiting for the younger Kaiba to show up and help him get out of trouble. Where was he?

Seto was about to click his tongue at the defiance of his right-hand man, when his little brother barged in huffing and puffing, having seemingly ran to his office. Mokuba clutched his knees while he tried to catch his breath, the two other males' gazes on him. When he found his voice, the teen looked at his elder and put his fists on his hips.

"Big brother, what are you doing? I've been waiting in the car for ages! If Isono and I don't go _now_ , I'll be late for school!"

"Mokuba," Seto clipped, doing his best not to sound too irritated, "I've just been informed that Isono was to go with you, and that I am to get a rookie to accompany me to my monthly meeting with the board of shareholders. I gather you knew of the situation?"

The younger Kaiba did his best not to let his nervousness show. He knew that his big brother would never yell at him too harshly, and that he would ground him for a month at worst. That did not mean he could push his limits and test his luck. He plastered on his most innocent, angelic smile, the one he kept for times when he made big mistakes he wanted to get away with, and replied, "I did. You didn't?"

Seto used every fiber of his being not to fume and spew fire right now, for he was to appear stoic at all times. Calm. Composed. Patient. The joys of having a teenager to look after...

"Obviously not, otherwise I wouldn't ask. And you know who's going to go with me, I assume?"

If he got no answer from Isono, maybe Mokuba would tell him. He detested going unprepared. Unfortunately for him, the universe had decided to spite him to his breaking point, for his younger brother shook his head.

"Nope, sorry. Guess you'll have to find out for yourself," he replied, then added, "can we go now? Or would you prefer I get reprimanded for being late?"

Seto bit back his retort and nodded curtly. They had to discuss this later, but for now, they were clear to go. He cast a last scornful glare to Isono, who bowed low in response and scurried off with the teen. Once the door was closed, the bodyguard let out a quiet, shaky sigh, and Mokuba gave him a thumbs up. Mission accomplished. The CEO was on the boat, albeit begrudgingly, and he had not skinned Isono alive. He had no choice, anyway, and he still might get back at them for this later. No matter. Both males thought it was good for the big boss to be reminded that he could not control everything in his life. They only hoped he would be calm enough so as not to actually kill anyone. He looked pretty close there.

Seto stood alone in his office for a few seconds, trying to process the reality of the situation he was now in. His meeting was scheduled in thirty minutes. He just had enough time to get into the car and get there, which meant he could not avoid meeting his new bodyguard, and so he could not refuse him. He had been forced. By his very own brother and closest associate. The feeling of betrayal felt bitter on his tongue, even if most logical and wisest part of his brain told him they must have had a good reason for doing this to him. Still, he did not like it one bit. He wanted to break something, or someone. Then an idea popped in.

_Might as well vent on the rookie, for he's got to have a use, after all._

With that resolve in mind, a tiny, cruel smirk twisted his pursed lips. If he was forced to have the man, he would make sure to make him feel just how unpleasant his presence was to his boss. The trainee would learn what it cost to displease a Kaiba, and it could even serve as a lesson for the future, if he did prove he was capable of handling security around the brothers. Most unlikely, though, but well, Seto had to consider all possibilities, now. If Isono went to such lengths just to introduce a rookie, that man was to be either someone the CEO would despise immediately by his looks in any other circumstances, regardless of talent, or someone he knew and could not think about hiring even under death threat. In any case, this was going to be interesting, and Seto could already feel a headache pounding in his skull. He swiftly dragged himself to the garage – for a Kaiba _never_ does anything without style and class, image was important after all –, and prepared for the incoming battle.

When he got into the vehicle, he was greeted by a mop of blonde hair and a sense of omen. His brain short-circuited in denial of what the figure before him showed, since it was _impossible_ that Jonouchi Katsuya was seated across from him, in a suit, bowing to him like Isono would have done. The yankee had never bowed to anyone he did not consider worth it in the few years Seto had known him, and he would surely never bow to him. At best, the blonde would try to strangle him after beating him black and blue. At worst, he would try and be best buddies with Mokuba, in front of him. Ugh. The mere idea of Mokuba getting near the mutt sent disgusting waves of horror through the elder Kaiba. Why the teen liked such trash was beyond him.

He wondered if someone had put illicit substances into his morning coffee, for he was sure he was getting hallucinations. Thinking about the mutt so early in the morning was unhealthy – he had to keep his intelligence intact for the meeting –, and downright surreal. Then everything crashed down when not-Jonouchi Katsuya spoke, with the voice and intonation of Jonouchi Katsuya.

"Good morning, Director Kaiba."

 _Director Kaiba._ The honorifics did not find their way into Seto's mind, for it was entirely impossible the man had pronounced them to him. That would mean the mutt, if it really was him, had been _educated_. No one could succeed in such a prodigy. However, Seto could not stay silent and gape like a fish out of water. He had decided to make the rookie suffer, and he would do just that. Gaining back his composure, the CEO managed a sneer.

"Don't expect to stay long. Whatever Isono saw in you, had to be under some hallucinogenic substance," he hissed. "I will bear with you for today, for his sake only, but I expect you to be gone tomorrow, no matter what security crap must be applied. I can do without an incompetent tailing me."

He did not ask if the poor bodyguard understood, for he had been clear enough. He expected to relish in the man's crumbling facade and sweating, but was sorely disappointed. Instead of breaking, the rookie bowed a little lower, so that his face could not be seen – clever bastard –, and replied as smoothly and evenly as the last time.

"Thank you for your generosity, Kaiba-sama. I will do my best."

Kaiba-fucking- _sama_ , now. Said with Jonouchi Katsuya's voice and inflections, but more refined and controlled. What in the world was happening? Seto had to force himself not to bolt at the bodyguard's throat and chin, to see his face and finally check if this was indeed the mutt, or some bloody farce. He stiffened and bit out, "Look at me, mutt."

The insult had been thrown out as a test, to see if he got any reaction from his new soon-to-be-sacked employee. And there, he swore he noticed a slight, almost imperceptible twitch of the blonde's left shoulder. But that was the only thing he could make out. The rookie obeyed, and golden-brown eyes leveled with his own icy blue glare and remained there, unflinching and perfectly calm.

_Bloody hell._

This really was the actual, yapping, good-for-nothing loser, the one and only Jonouchi Katsuya that was straightening himself before the CEO and talking to him with respect. And he spoke _formally_. Had the world gone mad and turned upside down during the first complete night Seto Kaiba had allowed himself to sleep in a long time?

The chauffeur drove them out of the property and entered Domino's traffic. The ride was spent in silence, both males staring at each other in what looked like a staring contest. On Seto's part, that is. On Katsuya's, it was just that he obeyed an order from his boss, and although he found it funny to resist the brunette's dark gaze, he maintained his cool and did not transpire any emotions. It was difficult, and a small, proud part of him still howled in outrage at the fact that he was letting himself be dominated by moneybags. But he had to. For the sake of both his and Isono's positions.

He had been trained to face such a thing, and he would prove to the douche just how good he could be a something, when he dedicated himself fully to it. He had resisted the tempting urge to snicker when Kaiba had almost gasped when seeing him, and hidden his smirk when he had answered the brunette's snark with the professional tone he had mastered. That was a victory in itself, and he could not wait to show how far he could go. It was challenging and he loved every second of it.

Seto's mind whirled with conflicting emotions, even though they did not show on his perfectly impassive face. He could not decide if he was more impressed or furious with Isono's bold maneuver, and he entertained the idea of firing the mutt just to screw everyone and vent his frustration at being manipulated into this mess. He thought about his right-hand man actually seeing something in the blonde, but squashed the idea instantly. He doubted Jonouchi would ever be more than a groomed street dog. Yes, he spoke amiably. And yes, he looked way more human when he had showered and dressed properly. But inside, he was still a dimwit. If not, well... apocalypse was to be near.

Then, the CEO remembered he had a whole board of shareholders to face in a few minutes. And he was accompanied not by a professional and intimidating Isono, but by an allegedly stupid and ridiculous Jounouchi. Some of the men there would indubitably comment the shift, and he was sure the brainless wimp would make a fool of him at some point, which he could not afford with those sharks. Oh, he was so screwed. Seto pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed irritably. He had only begun the day, and it was already hell.

Katsuya remained silent. Kaiba was about to say something, he was certain of that, and he mentally prepared himself for the blow. And sure enough, when the brunette looked back at him, his blue orbs were stormy.

"Listen here," he ordered tersely, "we will meet some of the most important and annoying people associated with KaibaCorp. They all look for a way to get at me and weaken my position, and even if I am perfectly capable of handling their nonsense most of the time, Isono manages to help me keep them in check when they're all together. I obviously cannot ask the same of you, but I at least hope you'll be able to behave and take care of yourself when I speak to them. So stay behind me, don't move, and don't even think about speaking to them, the whole time we'll be there. If anything, you can take a bullet for me and die in my place if things go really dire. Nothing more. Don't give them occasions to make fun of me, or you'll regret it. Do as you're told, like a good mutt, and I might consider keeping Isono and not suing your sorry ass for stupidly believing you could be worth more than you are."

Ouch. Jonouchi used every inch of his body not to cringe and frown. That hurt and enraged him at the same time, but that was to be expected and he could take it. Isono had warned him it would be that way. had tried speaking him down like this too. He had endured all that to be here, and he would not screw his only chance to prove himself. He could not disappoint his mentor. So he reined his increasingly shortening temper and nodded meekly.

"Yes, Director Kaiba. My life is yours."

He patted himself on the back when the CEO's brows furrowed. He had apparently managed to surprise him. Good.

Seto saw the briefest flash of hurt and anger in the blonde's eyes, and he was ready to mock him for this, but it quickly disappeared and left him with nothing to make fun of. Fuck. Whatever Isono had done to turn the yankee into _this_ , had been gloriously efficient. Was it brainwashing? Threats? A good paycheck had certainly played a good part in this, if he remembered the salary mentioned on Jonouchi's contract as "security guard" – more than the poor wimp had ever been able to see in his whole life, no doubt –. Seto snorted.

 _Security guard, my ass._ _More like a glorified security hound and a mockery of a bodyguard._

What he did not get, however, was why Isono had chosen him. What did he see in the blonde, that the CEO had missed? And how could he have missed it? There was absolutely nothing to see in the first place, was there?

The car stopped in front of KC tower, and Seto's train of thoughts halted. He got all business in the blink of an eye, his mind set on facing the most arrogant jerks of the universe, alone. Because going to such a meeting with Jonouchi would be like fighting a bear with a plastic fork. _Right._ The brunette squared his shoulders and stepped out of the car, face blank and ready to go to war.

Katsuya followed him without a word, slightly impressed at his boss's cool. Kaiba, as far as he understood, had to meet his shareholders every other month for several hours, discussing company strategies and whatnot. They were essential to the company, but because of that they were a bunch of the biggest of douchebags, even worse than the young CEO could ever be. Which was an exploit. And a dreadful sight, according to Isono.

If even his mentor thought this, the blonde was assured to get a hard time staying put while the sharks tried to shred Kaiba to pieces. He despised the CEO, yes, but the brunette was the one signing his paychecks after all, and even Katsuya had to admit he was impressed by his achievements. Seto Kaiba was a poor excuse of a human being, with the sentimentality of an oyster, but he was a good manager and a genius when it came to Duel Monsters and the entertainment industry in general. When given a choice, the blonde realized he would step in favor of his boss anytime, regardless of his resentment and dislike of the man.

* * *

"Did your lapdog abandon you, Mister Kaiba?"

Oh, how he hated them. The board of shareholders was already complete when Seto and his rookie had arrived, and they immediately began firing snarky comments at the change in staff. Whatever could expose the CEO's neck and make him vulnerable was good to try in their eyes. The brunette did not lose his cool, however, and merely acknowledged the remark with a sniper glare.

"He had other priorities to attend to," he explained simply and sat down in his usual chair.

Katsuya positioned himself right behind his boss, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses like any other member of the security staff at KC, and his posture unyielding and professional. He had dubbed it his "Man in Black cover", but his mane of unruly blonde hair, which he had refused to cut despite Isono's attempts, clashed with his classy uniform suit and overall appearance. The shareholders spared no time in pointing this out.

"Quite a strange replacement, isn't it?," a pudgy big-mouthed man said casually. "One could think you hired the yakuza."

"Or the reintegrating scum of Domino's incarceration center," another lean, gray-faced vulture added. "Didn't know you were into such charities, Mister Kaiba."

There it was. Seto had seen it coming from miles away. He tried his best not to snap back at them, knowing full well they awaited this golden occasion to tear him apart, and focused on redirecting the discussion to safer grounds.

"My security personnel is nothing for you to worry about, Mister Takamoto. He's not the one you will discuss KaibaCorp's new tournament campaign with. Don't mind him."

He hoped the mutt would get the silent indication that he had to remain calm. Jonouchi was prone to blow a fuse or two in a matter of seconds, and this would be bad for his image. Then again, this was an apparently different Jonouchi he had here, for financial reasons at least, so maybe he could trust the man's greediness to keep him like that until the end of the meeting. Maybe. He cursed Isono mentally for having him make such a risky gamble.

Katsuya did not need to be reminded what he had to do, however. He did not move a muscle and let the barb fly harmlessly over his head. Those barely tickled him, compared to the elaborate biting insults had created for his displeasure. Ignoring them and focusing on protecting the CEO was, for the moment, a piece of cake. He only had to imagine himself beating the crap of the pudding and skeletal pigeon for their remarks, which brightened his mood considerably, to stay in zen mode.

As the discussion went on however, the blonde found it more and more difficult to stay silent and expressionless, while the group of dumbasses antagonized Kaiba on every ground they could find. When it was not the size of adverts, it was on the colors of the cheerleaders's uniforms. Seriously, he could almost understand why the CEO was so snappy at times. Staying more than ten minutes with those idiots would have driven everyone else mad.

And of course, they spared no time in picking Katsuya apart. He was too young, or too stupid-looking, or maybe he was Kaiba's glorified boy toy? The rookie managed to keep his face muscles still, with sheer willpower alone, but he was close to implosion. He was ready to punch their teeth in any minute. Seto sensed his employee's growing irritation, and had to admit he was particularly strained himself. His shareholders outdid themselves today. Hopefully, this would end soon.

Takamoto, who had been eyeing Jonouchi for quite some time, suddenly motioned to him.

"Boy, you must feel idle, standing like that since forever," he drawled, "go fetch me a coffee, will you?"

Seto frowned. It was no secret that the breathing barrel was a pig with wandering hands. If the looks he gave his bodyguard were any indication, he undoubtedly thought he could put his dirty paws on the blonde and get out with it. The CEO felt the inexplicable need to castrate the man for good measure. Jonouchi was a poor mutt, but right now, he was part of KC staff. And even though the brunette was nowhere near the mere idea of compassion, he did not let his employees be molested either.

He was about to tell Takamoto to put his coffee where the sun did not shine, but Jonouchi was faster in answering.

"Of course, Mister Takamoto," he answered amiably, bowing his head slightly, "right away."

The blonde went out and back in rapidly, a steaming cup of coffee elegantly presented in his hand. He strode swiftly to the pudgy man to give him his drink, and the latter saw this as his chance to let his hand reach discreetly for the employee's bottom.

Seto saw red. But before anyone could react, Katsuya's own hand shot up and stopped Takamoto's mid-air, in a bone-crushing grip. The shareholder yelped in surprised pain, wriggling to get free, but the blonde did not budge an inch. The other men gasped. The bodyguard calmly put the cup on the table, sighing.

"Mister Takamoto," he said in a sickeningly polite voice, sending chills down the man's spine, "I believe you know the laws of this country regarding sexual harassment?"

"Wh-what the hell are you talking about? Let go of my hand, you dirty scum, or else-"

"Or what? You'll sue me for violence?" Katsuya gave him a twisted, feral smile. "Oh, I don't think so. After all, you would have to go out of this room first."

To prove his point, his iron grip tightened, earning another yelp of suffering. The other shareholders held their breaths.

"Let me get this straight," Jonouchi continued, his hidden gaze scanning the face of each man as he spoke, "I got all green from my hierarchy to protect Director Kaiba using all means at my disposal, his honor and professional integrity included. Now, this also extends to KC entire staff, and I am of them."

"Tch, you're all words, but you'll be weightless, boy. Do you know who I am?"

"And I?," the blonde deadpanned, bending his head so that his eyes could be visible behind his glasses. They briefly flashed with a deadly glare, and Takamoto gulped visibly. This bodyguard was a demon. "You speculated on my origins, if I remember correctly. And as fanciful as your theories were, some were not entirely false. I'll leave you the pleasure of deciding which was true..."

It was a lie, but only a partial one. Even if his former gang no longer existed, Katsuya did have experience in intimidating people and other stuff, and his looks supported the idea he came from a questionable background. Therefore, he knew how to make the pudgy pig shit his pants just with words and a few pointed stares, and it was enough for the arrogant bunch of jerks to shut their mouths after that.

When the blonde straightened himself and let go of Takamoto's throbbing hand, he reverted back to his blank and polite facade, and returned to his previous position behind Seto's chair. He had made his point, and it was time to land the final blow to them.

"I am not Mister Isono," he declared regretfully, "and I am truly sorry you miss him so much. However, I really hope that you will eventually come to tolerate me."

The room fell silent, and Katsuya resumed what he was doing like nothing had happened. Seto glanced briefly at the board, taking in their paling expressions while they understood the blonde demon was subtly threatening them, and joined his hands on the table, making himself more imposing then ever.

"I expect no less," he added evenly, "Isono is to be away for quite some time, and I'm sure you already appreciate the dedication of my new employee to KaibaCorp, don't you?"

That was a rhetorical question, obviously, but the CEO had to say something to reaffirm his authority and get everyone's eyes back to him. Deep down, a tiny sparkle of pride swelled in him, but he refused to acknowledge it. However, he decided he was satisfied for now. Perhaps he would keep the mutt a little longer than expected. If that stray mutt could scare off the shareholders like that some other time, he was at least worth a temporary adoption. He had been trained quite well, and Seto had to remember to ask Isono how such a miracle could be obtained. Besides, the brunette felt greatly tempted to try and see how far he could push the blonde until he snapped out of his strange professional demeanor, and he wanted to indulge himself the pleasure of taunting him. There might be some fun to have out of this, after all.


	4. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

Katsuya could not believe it. Kaiba had agreed to let him stay. Without killing him or worse. The new recruit knew there would be unsavory moments to come in the near future, though, for the CEO had looked too smug for comfort when he had declared that he was "sheltered for now". What the hell did that even mean? He was no stray dog, for God's sake! When would he be freed of this stupid dog image.

But for now, he was still part of KC staff, with its nice salary and advantages, and Isono was not worried for his boldness in introducing the blonde to their boss. That, at least, was great. Katsuya could sign the lease of his dream apartment and celebrate with a copious meal at Burger World. He could buy decorations and a car. Start a new, independent life for himself. With millions of projects in mind, he had fallen asleep in the blink of an eye and spent one of the best nights in his life.

Isono congratulated him the following day, a small, but proud smile gracing his usually strict features.

"That was great, Katsuya," he complimented, "you handled the situation very well and Director Kaiba was impressed."

"Was he really, or 'tis just a way to boost my ego?," Jonouchi snorted incredulously.

"His exact words were, among others, "Not bad for a yapping mutt", which is a huge progress in the way he sees you, I can assure you. I've known him for a very long time and he's not usually prone to compliments."

"Don't tell me. But I don't like bein' called a mutt. Am no dog, dammit!"

"Well, you'll have to prove yourself daily from now on, never letting down," the elder man said, "and hopefully, he will consider you more and more valuable as time passes. Which is why you will know learn how to use a gun, a sniper trifle, and of course the most sensible of information about the Kaibas. You will have to sign a confidentiality clause for that, but I'll make sure you become indispensable for them."

"A gun? A sniper trifle?" Katsuya was abashed. "I'll have a gun, no joke?"

"Of course, you're one of us, now," Isono replied determinedly. "You will also get a company car, a set of uniforms, and of course, a solid reference for leasing contracts, mortgages, and bank account operations. I remember you want to move to a nicer place, and KaibaCorp will provide you with the best reference you can get for this. Any lessor will throw themselves at your feet once you have it stamped, and I'm not joking. KC logo makes wonders on people."

"Whoah, hold on a sec'," he shot up his hands to shush his mentor-now-colleague, "how am I to 'ave a company car? Kaiba agreed to 'tis?"

"He did, albeit not directly." A glint of mischievousness shone in the elder's eyes. "I asked him if I could give you access to all options according to your new official status, but I never specified what I meant by that, and I have to say Director Kaiba doesn't know I added this specific one to the list. He trusts me for being reasonable, and he won't bother with those details, you know. And as you'll have to demonstrate rapidity, efficiency and availability at all times, I assumed a better means of transport than public transport was needed, don't you think?"

"Man, yer a sneaky bastard when ya wanna be!," the blonde laughed, grinning. "Now, I feel more of a Man in Black than ever!"

"Don't you tire of this comparison?," Isono mock-chided, although he looked amused. "I know where it comes from, but we don't fight aliens, nor do we have incongruous devices to erase people's memories..."

"No, but dat Takamoto dude was close to a frigging alien roach, I swear. Besides, me, using a sniper trifle, honestly! Wouldn't dare dream of it, and yet am going to do just dat."

"You don't know what you might need to do to protect the Kaibas."

"I figured."

Isono produced a stack of papers, annexes of Katsuya's main contract, and put them down on his desk for the blonde to sign. Confidentiality clause, full status options, training requirements and checkups were listed on pages and pages, and the new bodyguard's hand hurt by the time he had finished signing everything. Once that was out, his mentor led him to his small living space created next to his working space in his KC office, and offered him a coffee and sugar. When they got both comfortably seated, he began.

"I think it is best for me to begin with some information regarding Director Kaiba's private living arrangements and habits. As you will work with him until your training is complete, and if I know him well enough, I'm sure you will need it. I find it essential that you can answer as many of his needs as possible in short notice, and sometimes that requires some knowledge of the kind."

"What do ye mean, private livin' arrangements?"

"Well," Isono hesitated for a brief second, then resumed, "sometimes, Director Kaiba will ask you to do tasks that his personal assistant could take care of, but doesn't because he asks you specifically. Coffee, lunch, clothes, things like that."

Katsuya let out a breath. He had feared the worst, but if it was just to act as a personal slave, it sounded strangely better than something else he did not want to think about.

"Therefore," his mentor continued, "I made you a list of Director Kaiba's measurements and preferred choices of clothing, food, drinks, and of course where to find everything, and I would like us to go through it at least once together, to make sure you get everything and don't have any question."

The blonde's personal alarm went off at the mention of "measurements". Measurements of what? He might have asked this out loud, for the other answered immediately.

"Shirts, trousers, shoes, everything down to his underwear."

"Underwear?," he repeated dumbly, blinking as he tried processing what he heard.

Isono knew this was a big pill to swallow, and yet he felt mischievous and wanted to make some fun at his new colleague's expense. He replied evenly, almost nonchalantly.

"Yes, Director Kaiba only wears 100% cotton boxers, in plain and simple colors. Black, dark blue, or at worst, all hues of blue are fine, as long as they're not too flashy. Depending on the brand, he wears M or L, but after some time, you'll be able to determine which size fits him best. He likes the fabric to feel smooth on his skin and hates it when the bands are to tight..."

"WHAAAT?!"

Katsuya's brain had stopped to function completely. That was what he had feared. Simply imagining Seto freaking Kaiba asking that his boxer bands are not too tight, and the fabric... Ugh, just no. Nope. No way in hell he would think about _this_.

He caught a sparkle of mirth in Isono's eyes, and understood he was being made fun of.

"Yer joking, right? Tell me ye are, ye bastard!," he ordered, his cheeks red with embarrassment, which earned him a low chuckle from his mentor.

"In a way, yes, but only in the way I presented things. For the rest, alas, I fear this is indeed something you will have to know. You never know what you may be asked."

"Seriously..."

"Yes. Now, this is only underwear, I didn't mention anything about Director Kaiba's room yet..."

"Idon'twannaknowthanks!"

Nonplussed and merciless, the elder bodyguard deadpanned, "You don't have a choice in this. You will know everything about Director Kaiba, even if I have to thrust the information into your head myself. Don't think I won't do it."

He would, most certainly. Katsuya gulped, eyes as wide as saucers. Defeated, he eventually nodded. Isono continued as if nothing had happened.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, Katsuya, believe me. I know you don't particularly like Director Kaiba, and the sentiment is mutual. But in order to be able to shadow and protect him in the most professional way, you will have to know exactly what he does, where, and with whom, at any time, be it working, eating, negotiating, or having sex, and you'll have to respond to any of his needs accordingly, if he ever has some to express."

The parts about _having sex_ and _needs_ did not compute. The blonde tried his best to assimilate the idea that he would be spying on his new boss's life like a Big Brother type of obsessed dude, and he almost succeeded, until that part came along. The simple association of _Seto Kaiba_ , the frigid drama king, and _sex_ , like in messy hot intercourse involving an exchange of fluids with someone else than his ego, clashed in Katsuya's head and made it spin horribly. He wanted to vomit. Right now and here, on his mentor's shoes. Or run away screaming bloody murder. Or both. Anything to stop him thinking about such a terrible thing as Seto Kaiba fucking a human being voluntarily and having fun doing so.

His face scrunched up in disgust and nauseated horror, and Isono could not help it anymore. It was not meant to be that funny, of course, for his protegee would have to know if his boss indulged himself in such activity, but his utter disbelief and outright disgust at the idea were too much to bear. The elder man broke into a fit of laughing. The younger male, however, was not as amused.

"Stop it, old man!," he whined, "I didn't need ta know dat! Didn't even need ta know he 'ad a sexual life. Now I'm scarred fer life, thanks very much..."

Isono stopped laughing and stared at him for some time, and he got slightly unnerved. Had he said something wrong? Did his mentor not like being told he was "old"?

"As far as I know," the man told him very, very seriously, "Director Kaiba does not have any sexual life going. I've never seen him taking anyone to his room, or even kiss anyone. In fact, he..."

"Aaaand dat's it, I stop listening!," he yelled covering his ears and closing his eyes tightly.

Isono shook his head smiling. His protegee might be a man in body, being almost twenty, but in his head, he still was a teen sometimes. It was refreshing, in a way, but he would have to leave that aside if he wanted to be a real bodyguard. The elder took a sip of his coffee and waited for the other to calm down on his own, which he did quite rapidly.

Katsuya had not imagined, even in his worst nightmares, that he would have to do all that. Of course, he understood that bodyguards had to make sure nothing and no one was even remotely dangerous for his boss. Therefore, examining places where Kaiba would go, and checking the backgrounds of people he would meet to make sure they would not try to harm him were a given. But going as far as finding out if said people would give him STD if he fucked them... How about no.

He just grasped the immensity of the task he would be facing from now on. As Kaiba's shadow, he would have to be informed of everything twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and react at the slightest move. That was very empowering, in a sense, being so close to one of the most powerful men on Earth. That was also terrifying, and something he did not need in his already hectic life.

 _But now_ , he thought resigned, _I agreed and signed. No way I'm going back on my word._

He slowly turned back to his previous position, sitting stiffly across from his mentor and listening to what he would have to know – probably by heart – in order to fulfill his task to the best of his abilities. He swallowed back the bile that was rising up his throat, and his gaze riveted on Isono. The latter put his cup back on the table and started speaking again.

"Forgive me, Katsuya," he said somewhat remorsefully, "I know it's a lot to take in. You've gone too far to stop here, however, and I know you'll take it. Given some time, you won't feel anything about it anymore."

"Mh, I wouldn't be so sure, but well... have no choice, now, eh?"

"Don't be like that. I promise you it will be alright. If you prefer, I can leave you the notes I've prepared for you and you can read them quietly at home. Would it be better for you?"

Katsuya thought about it, but shook his head.

"No, I think 'tis better if we talk about it together. Dat way, I won't want to throw up everytime I read a line. I just learned Kaiba may 'ave a sexuality, and I don't want no surprises like dis again."

Again, a small smile crept up Isono's thin lips.

"I gather as much. I'm sorry I made fun of you, but I couldn't resist. I promise I will be more serious now."

"Ye better."

"Now, if you have to know, I'm not 100% sure, but I'd say Director Kaiba is asexual for now, but if he meets someone of interest..."

"Aaaaand I think I'll just vomit here, if ye don't mind."

Isono would have fun for days thinking about that particular moment. He liked his protegee to the point they might be very good friends, and making fun of him was too easy. He was glad to have him at his side. He needed the company.

Now more than ever, as he could sense something coming their way.


	5. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

The Kaiba Mansion was imposing, and even if he had been there a couple of times already, Katsuya still felt awry when he approached the monstrous house. After all, he had not so pleasant memories in there, like the time when Mokuba had tried poisoning him and his friends during a sick mind game. If not for the intervention of the other Yugi, they would have been dead meat by now.

A few years and a lot of adventures had passed since then, but even if the Kaiba brothers had mellowed to an extent and Mokuba had befriended them, showing an adorable side that only needed to be encouraged, the blonde could still feel chills run down his spine at the sight of the black iron gate of the manor. He was a man that forgave, yes, but he was not stupid enough as to forget everything that had happened. It was basic survival instinct, and his mind had to force him to reason with it, in order to prevent himself from bolting out and away from this frightening lore. He would not be surprised to find skeletons in a closet, or a damn vampire sleeping in one of the bedrooms – Kaiba excluded, of course.

Isono was sitting next to him, in the brand new company car he had chosen at the garage the day before. His mentor looked straight ahead, firing random questions to check if he had indeed learned his lessons about the elder Kaiba as he drove.

"How does he like his coffee?"

"Strong black, almost only grounded coffee beans and little water, no sugar."

"Yes. Favorite lunch?"

"Aside from nothing at all, he can accept a simple salad and chicken sandwich, or anything easy and quick to eat. Fresh products only, no pre-made shit."

"Right. If someone calls and you have to answer?"

"Generic answer is to tell them Director Kaiba's busy, and take note of their message if any. If they're pestering jerks, I've the right to tell them to fuck off, in nicer words if I want. If it's urgent, like Mokuba-kidnapping urgent, I go off immediately and text Director Kaiba while I'm moving. Concise and to the point."

"Good. Now, a more difficult one: what do you do if Director Kaiba has a late minute appointment or event?"

"I check the itinerary and place of meeting immediately, and I look for arrangements such as transportation, security available on spot and details like clothes, escorts, and so on, according to the requirements of the hosting party. And of course, people's backgrounds checking is a given in any case."

"How do you check backgrounds?"

"I flip through official certificates and papers, curricula, newspapers' archives, and of course I ask for thorough searches from competent agents whenever I feel the need. Number's on my phone under the name Inugami Deku."

"Mh. What kind of escort does he prefer?"

To attend some of the most publicized galas and parties, the young CEO often resorted to escort services so as to appear less of an impotent rock and more sociable to his associates and partners. It was a pain he forced himself to endure for his company's sake, and it was up to his most trusted employee to make sure it was as little painful as possible. In other words, the chicks selected for the hard task of being next to him – but still at a distance, one could only stand so much – had to meet a long list of requirements, before they could set foot on the sacred soil that was Kaiba's circle.

"He accepts only those who shut up and smile when expected to," Katsuya replied with a smirk. Typical Kaiba to ask for mute dolls he could walk and show around while talking business. No doubt the lucky ladies accepted everything with wide, dreamy smiles, and saw it as opportunities to try and get the ice king to melt and marry them. Poor, senseless things. If only they knew.

"Yes. And if the escort steps out of her place?," Isono asked next.

"I'm the one responsible for her, so I'll have to explain to her, with every means available and within the limitations of the law if I can, where she must stand."

That part he had some difficulties to say and had to learn by heart. To him, every and any human, regardless of gender, had to be treated with tact and respect when they had done nothing too reprehensible – unless their names were Yami Marik, Yami Bakura, or Mr Stockholder-ass; those few bastards deserved to rot in the lowest pit of hell. But Seto Kaiba's word was law. Still, he made a mental note to himself not to hurt the chick's feelings, as senseless and venal she could be.

The car rounded the house to the basement door, at the back.

"If a guest tells you nasty stuff?"

"I thank them for their kindness."

"If Director Kaiba allows you to retort?"

"I teach them respect with my brightest smile."

This one he had no problem with. He had already done it on his first day, and he would gladly do it again given the chance. He was sure Kaiba would be most inclined to create quite a few situations for him, just for the pleasure of seeing him threaten jerks. Twisted bastard.

The two men entered the gigantic basement of the manor, and Katsuya searched for a spot to park correctly. Isono did not instruct a specific space, so he chose one next to a plain white car with KC logos all over it. Maybe it was used by house staff, when they had to run errands for their boss?

"Good. In case of Mokuba-kidnapping emergency?," his mentor continued relentlessly as he parked reversing.

Mokuba getting kidnapped was the most serious case of all. A code red. A call for apocalypse. Ice-king Kaiba going berserk in a matter of seconds, bloody hammer of justice and assault rifle in hand.

"You'll be on the case, of course," he replied easily, "but I'm going as reinforcements. Mokuba's a priority, whatever the cost."

"That's right. Now, the toughest of all: let's say Director Kaiba asks for sex. What do you do?"

"I check for drugs and any sickness, discreetly." That part was obvious. A lecherous Seto Kaiba was not a sight to believe in right away. Seto Kaiba had most likely never looked into sex other than in biology class, if he ever attended it. "Then, once it's made clear he's not out of his mind, I offer him multiple options: one-nighter, escort..."

"And if he asks you specifically?"

Katsuya's first reaction was to choke on his own saliva and splutter profanities, slamming his foot on the brake. The car stopped abruptly and rocked a little, but Isono did not mind. The elder had noticed this particular subject triggered interesting responses from his protege, and he liked to tease him about it.

Besides, when alcohol was involved with their boss, and even though Kaiba was very rarely drunk and had never been to this very critical point when he would blatantly take sexual interest in anyone – Blue-eyes White Dragon not included, as it was humans that were referred to here –, strange things could happen and such a scenario was still possible. It did not hurt to ask young Jonouchi about it.

"Jeez, Isono, it's not even funny anymore!"

"To me, it is."

 _And I think I could expect similar reactions from Director Kaiba, were I given the occasion to try_ , the elder thought, although he kept this to himself.

The blonde relented.

"Fine, I'll answer. Let's say he wants to... to... yiikes, whatev'. If we're not all dead because of the sky tearing open and falling on us, I'd say I'd double-check for drugs and illnesses, then try to reason with his fried brain. No way Kaiba would openly ask for me of all people, so maybe he would have some logic left somewhere to stop him from shooting down his pride with a metaphorical bazooka."

"And if not?"

"Er... I knock him down, bring him to bed, make sure he doesn't suffocate in his vomit, tuck him, and go bleach my ears and make myself a monk."

Isono snorted. Count on Jonouchi to get over-dramatic.

"That's not what I call dedication, Katsuya," he teased him with an amused glint in his eyes.

"Dedication?" The blonde gawked at his mentor. "You call whoring myself to my boss dedication?"

"You're right, I'm mistaken." The elder paused, then, "I call it an honor. No one would have succeeded in sparking his interest except you. Director Kaiba's would have been ripe, ready for the..."

"Eeek!"

Had the car been lighter than a few tons, it would have bounced off the floor and flipped onto its roof with the force of Katsuya's jolt. Fortunately, it did not. His seat, however, fell down, and the poor young rookie found himself on his back, a guffawing Isono next to him.

"Isono!," he cried out. "I don't wanna be scarred fer life, ta very much! Ugh, thinkin' I have te begin work soon wit' dat in mind..."

"Well, I think you _will_ need this particular picture in mind, actually, if you want to survive the day. Keep in mind that Director Kaiba can be crafty, even more than , when it comes to make people's lives hell."

"Yeah, yeah," the blonde agreed sitting back up and smoothing his suit, "I know. Speakin' of , whad'ya goin' ta..."

"Language, Katsuya. We're in our workplace, here."

"Alright, alright, jeez. I was saying, what are you going to do with IKaiba, now? You're going to... to...?"

He did not want to say 'erase' or 'delete', as to him, it would be as good as killing the AI. He knew quite well that was an artificial being, programmed and all, so not an actual human being, but deep in himself, he could not accept that his mentor would destroy the AI, even though he had been created on computer and did not possess a body. Plus, was an imprint of Seto Kaiba's mind and reactions, so technically he was as human as the CEO could be. And if the blonde was honest, he had to admit he had grown quite fond of his former tormentor, without whom he had not been able to become a member of KC staff.

It was strange, really, that Katsuya found an AI, a digital copy of a man, a better person than the original. Maybe it was because IKaiba had not been at fault for the foul mind of his model, and that it was not him that had made the blonde's high school life a nightmare. Maybe it was because of his help, even if he had been created solely for this purpose. In any case, for Katsuya, IKaiba had a personality and _was_ a person capable of thought, so erasing him was as though murdering a sensible being.

Isono saw where his protege was going, and answered truthfully.

"I don't know. On a practical level, it would be a pity to delete hours of work. On a humanist level, well... I gave him access to KaibaCorp's network and created him using advanced quantum technology, so basically he could avoid destruction should he choose to."

"So you're telling me you gave birth to an intelligent digital being, and that he can choose whether he wants to live or not. He could be his own person."

"Yes, simply speaking. But I programmed him so, so that despite all the upgrades and changes he could apply to himself, he will be forever incapacitated in harming the company and its staff, unless it is for security measures. And then again, I defined what 'security measures' was to mean."

"You gave him your morals, then," Katsuya deduced smirking, which Isono mirrored.

"Pretty much. It wouldn't do to have a wild AI destroying the world, would it? Although I doubt it will ever happen with IKaiba, since he's perfectly capable of seeing where such a scenario could lead, and believe it or not, he has some respect for humankind. Or just for me, which leads to the same result. Also, he asked about you, recently. Stated he wanted to know of your progress after the intensive training he gave you, arguing he didn't want his efforts to be for naught. He sounded pleased to know you succeeded in your first trial, but he wants to observe you. Therefore, I have to ask if you'd agree for him to download on your company phone and replace its OS. Your phone would work as if he wasn't in there, but he would be given the opportunity to keep tabs on you. For professional purposes, obviously. Would you mind?"

Katsuya thought about it. A second, digital Kaiba in his company phone, in addition to the actual one he would be living with almost seventeen hours a day at work? Yeah, why not, as long as he was always alone in his bathroom and bed. Being watched by a digital version of Kaiba while sitting on the toilet or singing in his shower was too disturbing a thought, and he was sure the AI would never try it. He wished, at least. Besides, it was not as if he could get more exposed to Kaibaness, as he tended to put it now, and knowing him, he doubted would seriously consider being refused, anyway.

At this point, the blonde was certain that the contract he had signed was a pact with the devil, and that it had lead to him landing in a parallel dimension where everything gravitated around Seto Kaiba. He would not become a brainwashed pawn if he stayed cautious, but he figured he had concessions to make. Better get used to it, even though the former Yankee in him promised retaliation someday. And as he thought previously, IKaiba was not Kaiba, and he had the slightest hope of getting along with the AI. Maybe. Otherwise, he would have to exorcise his phone.

He opened the car's door, nodding in agreement towards his mentor, and went out of the vehicle. If the AI went all Big Brother on him, he could still get rid of any electronic device in his apartment. Or he could really become a monk on a mountain, far, far away from civilization. There was always a solution.

As if on cue, his company smartphone – a brand new, KC custom version that he got with the car, worth more than his life – bipped and lit with a loading screen.

 _Didn't miss a beat,_ Katsuya mused as he watched the loading bar filling up quickly, erasing his former KC operating system. Once the installation got completed, the screen showed his desktop with his apps untouched, in the way he had put them before the AI came in. The only difference was the blueish white stripes adorning the background, and a text message popped up saying,

**Thank you for allowing me, mutt. Now you better not ridicule what I've done for you. Will be doing adjustments while you're occupied. We'll talk later.**

It was not signed, but there was no doubt at who it was. The blonde huffed and pocketed his phone back. The AI would make himself at home, and it was like getting a new pet. No, not a pet, more like a dangerous, omniscient roommate with a sharp tongue and an egocentric behavior. Isono came to him, his own phone displaying something for him to read.

"It seems he's content," he commented, "he just told me he installed himself."

"Yeah, I hope I won't regret it."

"I'm sure you won't. Trust me."

"When do I not? But," Katsuya realized suddenly, "does our boss know about him?"

A silence gave him the negative answer he suspected. His mentor sighed.

"I'm afraid I didn't want to risk telling him everything at once. The news of you becoming his bodyguard was a lot to take in, and mentioning an AI with his looks and attitude to train you might have been a little too much. So..."

Was he talking about an adult, or a tantrum child? The rookie groaned.

"Great, now I have to hide things to freaking hawk-eye Kaiba. Walking through a landmine field would have been less dangerous."

Isono chuckled. He could not deny this.

The two men made their way up the stairs to the first floor of the mansion, then separated when they reached the second floor. The elder trotted to Mokuba's bedroom, while Katsuya had to go to Kaiba's door and wait for him outside. The brunette had expressly forbidden him to enter. Maybe he thought, in his doggy fantasy conception of the blonde, that his posh furniture and floor would get sullied by poverty-cursed paws and flying blonde hairs. Or maybe he was prudish and could not imagine being seen in his boxers by a former high school scapegoat. Which was ironical, since Jonouchi knew everything about said boxers. Right now, only a naked, flirtarious Kaiba could affect him.

_I'm a professional. I ain't intimidated by no boxers. Even with moneybags inside... Wait, moneybags can't wear boxers. They have no legs._

He snickered despite himself at his poor private joke, almost missing the soft click of the door handle being pushed down, and the murmur of the hinges as they moved.

"What's so funny as to make your barks loud enough to bother me in my shower, mutt?"

_Okay, so maybe he's not that prudish._

The CEO had opened the door clad in his bathrobe, hair wet from the shower he had just finished taking. His body radiated warmth, suggesting he had used steamy hot water, but his blue orbs remained as icy as ever and made him shudder. They threw daggers at him, as if his very existence affronted him.

The blonde remembered his manners and bowed low. The gesture conveniently hid his boss's gaze away from his face.

"Forgive me, Kaiba-sama," he apologized as formally as he could.

He had nothing more to say. Justifying himself would not help his case, only worsen things. The irritated snort he received in answer confirmed his boss had woken up on the wrong side of the bed. But then again, when did he not?

"You wait here. I'll be ready in a few minutes."

And with that, Kaiba slammed the door to his face. Sighing, Katsuya took back his position, standing in front of the door, and wondered what the brunette could throw at him today. Insults, yes, but then? Crazy errands? What could they be? He had a feeling he would soon realize how cruel the man could be. He was the perfect target of his whims, and he could only receive them with open arms. He had accepted his doom the day he had signed.

He absently remarked that some weeks ago, he would have popped a vein at the mere thought that Kaiba could insult him. Now, it strangely felt normal. Mundane, even. His everyday life as a KC agent would consist of being insulted and taunted on a daily basis anyway, until a miraculous day came when the CEO tired of them or deemed him worthy of his royal respect. It was not the worst that could happen to him, quite the contrary. Nevertheless, that was a sad prospect, come to think of it. He supposed it could not be otherwise with his boss.

As if summoned by his fatalist thoughts, Kaiba showed up, his trademark coat framing his imposing presence. A gloomy aura surrounded the CEO, as he made his way past Katsuya and down the corridor to the first floor. He did not cast a single glance at his employee and strode ahead, while the blonde rushed to follow him. The endless paneled wall stretched to the landing of the grand staircase, and only the echoing clicks of their shoes on the polished floor could be heard between them. Having a break before the young bodyguard began the day was a relief in itself. Maybe.

They stopped in the kitchen, where a stack of newspapers awaited Kaiba. He sat down on a bar stool, picked up the first paper and opened it. Katsuya immediately set off to prepare a pot of coffee. He assumed that the absence of anything to eat or drink was a first test, and he preferred being scolded for preparing something, than being fired for doing nothing. It was likely he would be asked to do every and any chore available.

The blonde began maneuvering among the facilities and tools to brew a fresh pot of hot black coffee, exactly as his boss liked it. Isono had conveniently given him a map of the house and indications about where everything could be in every room, and he had learned them by heart to prevent making a dork of himself when he looked for the grinder and spoons. He felt more or less at ease here, since he had worked in various places as cook and waiter, and he moved quickly and silently. Concentrated, he failed to notice the brief glares Seto sent his way, observing him.

At the same time, he retrieved a frying pan from a cupboard, two eggs and bacon in the fridge, and began making a continental breakfast. Kaiba would surely not touch any of what he prepared, but he did not see anything made for Mokuba, and no doubt the teen would soon barge in hungry and thirsty. It was up to him to feed the boy, he guessed.

Only a few minutes later, indeed, the younger Kaiba came down the stairs with Isono, chatting happily while the other hummed and nodded from time to time. His brother greeted him and took a second paper, concentrated on whatever he was reading. Katsuya turned to him and bowed his head with a quick but respectful greeting, and soon two plates were ready, along with freshly pressed juice and steaming coffee. Mokuba shone with joy and bounced on his stool as he took his plate.

"Woah, Jonouchi, I'm so happy to see you! I'm glad Nii-sama agreed to keep you. It will be a lot livelier with you around. No offense, Isono."

The elder bodyguard bowed curtly.

"No offense taken, Mister Kaiba. I agree that Jonouchi's youthful character can appeal to you more than old me would."

"Huh? Since when you're old? No, Jonouchi's my friend, and I'm super glad he'd be working by me. It'll be so much fun!"

As the blonde served Seto coffee, the latter sniffed contemptuously.

"While I'm concerned that you consider a bunch of nerds and street rats your friends, I'll overlook it for now. But I'd like to remind you I still haven't approved of him yet. He's still here, yes, and heavens forbid it's a miracle, but his protecting you will depend whether he's truly competent or not. And he'll have to prove that with time. I wouldn't get my hopes up, though. One cannot consider a trained monkey to be human, until it proves its skills go further than licking my ass and holding a rifle."

 _Well I hope you won't get literal with the ass-licking,_ Katsuya thought while he straightened and took a step back, _God know Isono wouldn't let me rest with this._

Instead, he added, "Director Kaiba is right, Mister Kaiba. I'll have to prove my worth and proficiency, for protecting you is the highest task I could be trusted with. I'm ready to put everything on the line to keep you safe, and that's exactly what I'm expected to show Director Kaiba. Until then, I'm afraid I cannot allow myself to get familiar nor lax in your presence, not until Director Kaiba tells me I can. I deeply apologize for the inconvenience it might cause you."

Mokuba gaped for a second, taken aback by the blonde's polished way of speaking that was so different from what he had been used to hear. The elder Kaiba, for his part, toook his mug and took in the scent of the beverage he had been served, then took a tentative sip. Satisfied with the taste, he took a mouthful and let the bitter flavor of his personal nectar fill his taste buds.

 _He'd put everything on the line, he said,_ the CEO thought, an idea forming in his mind, _well then, I'd happily see that for myself._

* * *

The top of KC tower shone in the late afternoon light, and Kaiba was typing away frantically on his computer. It as almost seven, but the CEO would not go home before long. He had too much work to do. Nevertheless, he occasionally glanced at the digital watch displayed in the bottom right-hand corner of his screen, checking the passing of time with minute precision.

_Ten minutes left._

He was alone in his office, which was dead silent aside from his typing. The bustling of the city did not reach his work sanctuary, and he was grateful for the studious peace he was blessed with. No phone calls from irritating leeches, no technical problems, no idiots running about. He was alone. It was great.

_Eight minutes left._

With a smirk, he resumed his programming. Jonouchi would not make it, and Seto relished in his defeat in advance. In eight minutes, he would be able to show he stupid mutt just how inferior he was, and what big a mistake he had done when enrolling into the staff of KaibaCorp. It would be fun to watch this.

_Six minutes left._

All of a sudden, a door clicked loudly not far away, on the other side of his office's door. Someone was entering his secretary's office, but she was not here at present. Kaiba had given her some time off while he gave his new bodyguard all the redirected calls and current tasks, in addition to the urgent errand he had given him an hour ago. It meant that the blonde was back earlier than expected.

_Forfeiting already?_

A knock echoed in the silence. Kaiba hid his triumphant smirk and called, "Enter."

He lost all wish to smile though, when Jonouchi entered with a huge paper bag in one hand, and a stack of neatly arranged papers in the other.

"Director Kaiba," he said evenly, "here is your order."

He placed the bag on the far corner of Seto's desk, then put the stack closer to his computer.

"The Financial Department just communicated the results of last month's promotional sales. I asked them for their report as regards the upcoming Kaiba Land festival, with the updated budget. They promised it for tomorrow afternoon."

"It'll be too late," Kaiba grunted absently.

Jonouchi nodded.

"I agree, that's why I demanded it be delivered to your office first thing in the morning. I advised them early, so they should be on time."

The brunette did not acknowledge his employee's reply. He should have been pleased to see that the mutt finally showed usefulness at something, but he was more interested in how the blonde had managed to get what was inside the bag.

It was a plain black paper bag with a cradboard bottom, but inside he found a carefully presented meal covered by a metal dome. A paper tag showed the elegant name of the most popular French restaurant of Domino, _La Fleur de Lys_. Only big hats went there, and reservations had to be made a year in advance. Not to mention they never made go-away meals.

Seto had ordered the most expensive four-course they could offer, including a plate of French cheese matured in ancestral Roquefort caves before being sent over to Japan in special containers. This alone had a three-digit price, and made the reputation of the establishment. He had sent his employee and demanded the task to be completed in an hour, without any indication as to how it would be paid for or if it was even obtainable, and he was certain it would be impossible to achieve in the end.

Yet here he was, with a delicious-smelling meal sitting on his desk. It had been like that all day. Seto had thrown every possible demand, some stranger than others, but all extremely time and energy-consuming, and so far the rookie had done quite well. It got frustrating, really, and Seto found himself dead set on making the blonde blow a fuse. Presently, he wanted to ask how that poor street rat had managed to even step foot into _La Fleur de Lys_. But he did not. He had to push farther and farther, and he had another plan he would put into motion now.

He hummed noncommittally and waved dismissively at Jonouchi.

"I expect no less from them. Now, I need coffee. I finished the last pot a while ago."

He caught a glimpse of the blonde hesitating for a second, and his lips turned cruelly upwards.

"What? Thinking you'd go home so soon? It would be inconvenient to leave me alone and undefended while you sleep, wouldn't it."

His employee froze, then nodded.

"Yes, Kaiba-sama."

"And you're more professional than that, I hope."

"Yes, Kaiba-sama."

"I thought so." A pause, then, "So you'll stay with me until I decide to go home. You can go stand somewhere there," he gestured behind him. "Don't speak unless asked to, don't do anything that I don't allow beforehand, and don't go anywhere unless I give you permission to. Now stop bothering me, I've got work to do."

He did not wait for his answer and returned to his coding. From the corner of his eye, he watched the form of the blonde going to the kitchenette to make coffee, and soon forgot about him in the succession of lines he was revising.

He did not touch the meal. For Katsuya, this tempting piece of edible heaven that his boss had carelessly overlooked would become the symbol of long, torturous hours.


	6. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

The day had been alright, if you asked Katsuya about it.

Until seven, Katsuya could be seen running everywhere in the city and KC tower, playing the delivery man for the engineering team, or the waiter for all the tower floors, or even the administrative assistant of Kaiba's secretary. Basically, he was the personal slave of everyone in the building, and it was as if they had all received a memo with clear orders to make his life difficult.

The afternoon, especially, was a real obstacle course. When it was not super fragile electronics to bring to Lab #7 on floor -2, in the Development of Duel Disk System Section, it was super pricey brand coffee for the Sales Executive Guy of the Goods Department on floor 7, or essential contracts and papers and invoices to be signed by Dude #1 on floor 1, then stamped by Lady #2 on floor 19, and finally be brought back to Dickhead I-see-your-papers-are-not-well-stapled #259 on floor 5.

Really, KC tower was a loony bin when it came to paperwork, even though the rookie guessed there had to be some organization in there. Someone like Kaiba could not have a mess of a company, and even if KC was very advanced in the technological field and everything could be online instead of printed on paper, he certainly had his reasons. So it was just a matter of time before the blonde caught up with the logic. In the meantime, he ran and asked a million times for people he did not know.

Inwardly, he thanked the gods he had experienced so many strange things in his highschool years, with Yugi and the gang. He had survived the Egyptian world of the Pharaoh, with a highly disturbingly laser-looking Priest Seto – whom he prayed never to see again –, the Shadow Realm and its man-eating monsters, and the Pharaoh's mind, which had been a dangerous labyrinth full of traps and an angry Dark Magician. Compared to these crazy adventures, KC tower was a loony bin, but a nice loony bin. The normal kind, without mad shadows living in ancient artifacts or a monstrous god of darkness with a fire-breathing crotch. No, here, the only dangerous being lurking in the corners could be Kaiba, whom Katsuya preferred immensely.

Plus, he discovered that Kaiba's secretary was an angel. She was a petite, plump woman in her thirties, and she could talk amiably with the blonde while dealing with her work like Shiva, one hand on the keyboard and another redacting stuff and stapling and filing at the same time. Even if Katsuya had undergone a commando training to reach this level of mastery in his own job, he was impressed by the energy his colleague could deploy. And she was fairly attractive, if he was honest with himself. With her bright onyx eyes, her thick mane of brown hair, and her hyper and adorable character, she was pretty in her own way. She was freshly married, and though his husband had to bear up with her long hours of work at the company, he had to be happy with her in his life, Katsuya mused. Who would not?

Satsuki, as she introduced herself, understood the bodyguard's situation and felt empathy for him. They were both on the same boat, now, and she knew Isono was the only employee to have stayed for as long as the young CEO had been here. Therefore, expectations and trials were higher and harder on his trainee. The elder man had briefed her on Jonouchi's situation, and she tried to help him, going so far as to free him fifteen minutes up to take a quick lunch. The blonde did not spare his efforts in trying to make himself worth in the eyes of Kaiba, and she respected and supported that.

Until evening time, neither Katsuya or Satsuki saw their employer. It seemed that he was negotiating with some American partners – one might say insulting, given the screams that came from the other side of the door –, and he had specifically ordered that no one was to disturb him before the secretary had to go home. Only coffee, urgent papers, and red code alerts could pass the threshold of his fort. Everything and everyone else had to stay outside.

The adorable woman had to go home, eventually. Kaiba had given her her evening and ordered that she redirected all the calls to the blonde's phone. When she did, she knocked on Kaiba's door and turned to the blonde to give him a thumbs up and mouth him a "Good Luck".

Then there was the errand to _La Fleur de Lys_ , during which Katsuya blessed Isono and his tips on how to use KC unlimited business card and use money to have anything. That, and his most dazzling smile, the one he kept for Gramps whenever he wanted a new card pack in advance. It did not work often on Gramps, but the manager fell for it and the huge extra he got for his little favor.

But now, the bodyguard was trapped into Kaiba's office, like a good pup sitting at his master's feet, and he was dead bored. He had to stay on alert should anyone want to bomb them through the windows or burst in through the door and go for a suicide operation, but damn was it boring.

When he got fed up with listening to his boss typing, he let his mind wander to other things, trying his best not to look at the paper bag he had gone so far to fetch for the CEO, and abandoned just like that. It had looked delicious, and the price itself represented what Katsuya used for food and rent in two months. He would have done a lot of things to taste the stuff.

_Concentrate!_

With a mental jolt, he went back to plainer things, like when he could invite Honda and Yugi for a nice night out, or if he could play Duel Monsters again. He lost himself in thought.

_Several hours later_

Katsuya forced himself not to squirm.

He had been ordered not to move, and even though he felt more and more irritated at turning into a potted plant, he intended to do just that.

But he needed to go to the loo. His bladder could only hold for so long.

How much time had passed, exactly? He could not occupy his thoughts as much as he had wished, now that he had mentally revised his old deck three times and planned a month worth of nights out with his friends. It was well past midnight, if the darkness engulfing them was any indication, and no one dared call during the night. His phone remained silent, so he could not take it out and play with it or look at the time on it.

There was no clock on the walls, and the only source of light was the glaring screen of his boss, with said boss before it blocking whatever was displayed. Kaiba was fully enraptured into whatever he was doing, and nothing of interest could capture the blonde's attention aside from him. He had his back to the window and could not move to see the view or to watch his wristwatch.

Okay, it was not uncomfortable anymore. It was painful.

The CEO had said Katsuya could not go anywhere unless given permission, and his pride had prevented him from asking to go pee until now. He was not a child, and he would not beg for it like a dog, thank you very much. However, as his pain grew and his need to relieve himself got impervious, he could not afford to be proud any longer. It was a health issue now.

Mortified, he decided to give his boss the awaited golden occasion to humiliate him.

"Kaiba-sama," he called with as much control as he could, "may I go for a few minutes?"

At first, the brunet did not react. After a moment however, his cerulean eyes turned to glare at him.

"What for?," he demanded.

_Trust moneybags for adding salt to de wound. Won't let go until I'm on me knees. Jerk._

Taking in a deep breath, Katsuya answered, "I humbly ask for your permission to go to the bathroom, sir."

Kaiba processed the question, his glare turning into a frown, then his frown giving way to a slow, mocking smirk. The blonde summoned the last remnants of his best poker face, so as not to strangle his employer and send him flying through the window. He wanted to pee _and_ keep his job still. He thought about Isono, and of course the money. He could not give up now.

Though as seconds stretched painfully by, the will to remain a lapdog for the insufferable man that tortured him drew thinner and thinner.

Seto studied his employee's face closely. He could see his breaking point, and yet he wondered if he could play with him some more, before he crossed that line. It was entertaining to see the proud yankee practically beg for the simplest right to relieve himself, and the brunet could only imagine the things he could further demand from him.

Though it was illegal to forbid an employee from going to the bathroom. Come to think of it, he absently guessed it was also not normal to keep an employee up and working for too long, but the 'too long' was up to him to decide, and no one was complaining yet – not that he would have accepted any complain from the rookie. He doubted the blonde would sue him for anything, anyway, but Isono could have wind of it, and that was not something the elder bodyguard needed to scold him for. His henchman really liked the mutt and would be a pain to deal with should anything happen.

"You may," he answered eventually.

Katsuya nearly ran to the door the second he heard that, but he managed to breathe out a short "Thank you, Sir" before he turned to open it. He got stopped by Kaiba's voice as he pushed it open.

"You have five minutes. Bring me a fresh pot of coffee, while you're at it."

A pot of coffee, like the one in the kitchenette, with the coffee maker that was turned off because Kaiba had said he did not want coffee anymore some hours ago? Was he joking? And he had five minutes to pee then some more to make coffee and bring it, or five minutes to pee _and_ brew coffee and bring it? Because there was a huge difference here.

The few seconds he needed to ask himself these questions had his boss leer at him, an irritated eyebrow raised in questioning.

"What? Do you want to challenge yourself and do all your tasks in less than four minutes?"

It answered his questions, at least. With as much dignity and professionalism as he could given his painful bladder and slightly panicked state of mind, thinking of what the brunet could do to him if he failed to be on time, Katsuya closed the door. He released a shaky sigh once the haughty face of Kaiba was no longer in sight, and then ran to the nearest bathroom.

He could not remember a time when he had felt so relieved and relaxed in his life. When he finally had the right to urinate, the blonde forgot all about pain and anger and lost himself in the bliss of the moment, during which his brain squashed the fleeting hint of sadness at the fact that taking a piss made him feel like this. He would be sad and angry at dick-head Kaiba _after_ he survived his shift and slept, when his head would be clear enough to temporize his cooped up feelings. Otherwise, there might not be a boss to speak of anymore the next day, much less a recognizable person, Mokuba and Isono be damned. For once, part of his former yankee self wondered if Yami Marik would have known creative ways to go back at his persecutor for this.

_Am real dead tired if I think 'bout crazy dudes when peeing... Must get all business again. I'm a pro. A pro!_

But as he carefully washed his hands, a loud and thundering rumble reminded him that should said shift last any longer, his will alone would eventually not suffice to keep him going. His stomach had been empty for more than ten hours now, as the last thing he ate was a sandwich at about two in the afternoon.

His appetite was not like it used to be when he was a highschool student, but it was still fairly big, and he had been forced to see the delicious-looking meal of _La_ _Fleur de Lys_ stay untouched the whole time. Wasting food was a crime in his eyes, and it was worse to let it go waste in front of him, without doing anything about it. The torture was immense.

Katsuya was no idiot, he was sure this was done to him on purpose. The CEO knew the blonde loved to eat, and he was dead set on breaking his will. Hitting him through his stomach was a low blow, but a calculated one. The rookie had been able to quiet down his hunger as his more pressing need to pee took over, but now that the latter had been taken out of the way, there was no more going around it. He was famished. And he certainly did not drink enough either. He had to counter what he could, and hope the rest would not go noticed too early.

He took large gulps of tap water, both to rehydrate himself and to deceive his stomach into believing it got some form of sustenance. No doubt Kaiba would seethe at the noise it made, and Katsuya hoped he would soon be finished and able to get a drive-thru meal on the way home. Such an amount of work without a single break would kill them both really quickly.

He wiped his mouth, dried his hands, and pointedly avoided looking at his reflection in the bathroom mirror when he straightened up, certain that he would see something ugly. He did not need to see how much of a zombie he had become. He had started at seven in the morning, and he had not slept that well the previous night, waking up at four, as he was both excited and nervous for his first day. Now, he regretted the lack of sleep, as the excitement of the day and the boredom of the night, plus the constant tension he had been feeling since he began his training, even though he had been able to push it down until now, finally took their toll on him. Nevertheless, he bravely dragged himself to the kitchenette in the secretary's office to make the pot of coffee Kaiba ordered.

How did Isono bear with the CEO's shitty personality all the time? Was it even something he had to bear with, or did Katsuya draw the lucky number? No, those were rhetorical questions. He already knew the answer, and it depressed him a little. Sure, he and Kaiba disliked each other, but for their mutual resentment to turn out like this? He could not understand.

He rubbed his eyes, yawned, and glanced at his wristwatch as he woke up the coffee maker, and noticed that it was in fact two in the morning. He had spent seven hours without peeing or drinking, but this was not what startled him. What sent a new jolt of anguish through him, was the sudden realization that he had no idea when his five-minute break had begun, and his level of stress went up a notch. He sent a short prayer to the machine in front of him to hurry up, even though it was usually quite fast to do its job.

His pocket buzzed dully, for the first time since he started his shift. Frowning, he took out his phone, which had lit, and read two simple lines that appeared on the screen.

 **What he does is illegal** , they said, **you should not abide to it.**

**If you let him, he'll kill you.**

Katsuya snorted. So, IKaiba could definitely go all Big Brother on him, and despite his previous assumptions, he found the message oddly comforting. Maybe it was the fact that an artificial being had more sensibility than an actual being when it came to him, or maybe it was that someone, anyone, thought about his well-being at a time like this. Or maybe he was simply too tired and got hallucinations.

But even if the AI was right, things were never that easy with Seto Kaiba. As a rule, the CEO did what he wanted, and his army of lawyers cleaned whatever mess he could create. They silenced complaints and crushed resistance. So, what was a low runt like Jonouchi Katsuya to him? Standing up to him was suicidal.

And most importantly, it was obvious that wanted the blonde to resist. To bite back, so that he could kick him out. He awaited the moment his unwanted employee stepped out of line to pin him down and land the final blow. That was pure egoistical, maniacal attitude. Grand Kaibaness. But too bad for him, this time, his slave would not resist like he usually did. Quite the contrary, if Katsuya had his way.

If he was still able to function properly after the torture he presently endured, that is.

His phone blipped almost angrily, as another message blinked on the screen.

**Your face is an open book, Jonouchi. You're going head first into a disaster. You cannot say I didn't warn you.**

Katsuya frowned at the device. Of course, the camera lens on the front could get a picture of him, if the AI activated it. And his remark made a lot of sense. But although his piece of advice was wise, it could not be considered. The blonde had already gone this far. He would not back down now.

He pocketed back his phone and took the steaming pot of coffee. He did not notice the former was still alive and working, and he could not care care less. What welcomed him when he entered back into the office of his boss made his blood run cold.

"That makes seven minutes and fifty-eight seconds," the devil announced flatly, "so either you cannot count up to five properly, or you're testing my generosity. In any case, this defiance will get you nowhere."

The rookie bit back his tongue so hard he must have drawn blood. He would not answer. And he would definitely not throw the brunet out the window. Nope, sir.

With an inward sigh, he strode back to his spot, pouring the hot beverage he had just made for his boss in his branded KC cup. The brunet eyed it for a second, before he diverted back to his computer.

"You took so much time," he commented, "that I don't want it anymore. But thank you for the effort, I guess."

As he bowed and forced a strained smile to appear on his lips, Katsuya really wished Yami Bakura or Yami Marik were in the vicinity. At least he would have had a designated culprit to point at if his boss suddenly met the pavement dozens of blocks down. Too bad for the blonde, they were enjoying nice holidays in the Shadow Realm. Lucky bastards.

_Two hours later_

He could not take it anymore.

It had felt an eternity since he last drank water, and his stomach had realized that liquid was not energy-convertible food. It twisted and burnt angrily with repressed hunger, and Katsuya would not be able to prevent it from growling any minute. When it would, he would be in serious trouble.

His mind was slightly fuzzy from exhaustion and his head began to spin. From time to time, his eyes found their way back to the neatly packed meal of _La_ _Fleur de Lys_ , and his mouth watered uncontrollably each time they did. He was going nuts just looking at the food his boss so nonchalantly ignored.

Kaiba, for his part, remained unknowing of his bodyguard's torments, even though he could have imagined them. After all, he had expected them when he had asked him to fetch the meal. But right now, he was going through a very tricky piece of coding, one that determined the success of his new solid vision project, and he could not spare a second thought on the mutt. His head was filled with orders and numbers and predictions and...

And his thoughts derailed when a draconic growl echoed from behind him.

He spun around and riveted his gaze on the sheepish face of Jonouchi. The sound of the rookie's stomach had startled even himself, and he had not been able to hide his panicked look in time. Seto would have smirked at the sight, were he not infuriated with his employee's disruption.

"Just what do you think you're doing?," he spat. "That's the second time you disobey me."

His brain provided him with the fact that the blonde could not help it, but he did not care. When he decided something, not even the _gods_ could stop him.

"Pardon me, Kaiba-sama," the runt apologized in a strangely slow tone, "I-"

"I don't care for your excuses," he dismissed, annoyance edging in his voice, "keep that stupid body of yours in check. I'm not paying you to interrupt my work."

Katsuya watched his boss turn away from him as if he was a nuisance taken care of and not worth attention anymore, and something broke inside of him. His mind a complete haze, his pride bursting through his dulled will, nearly crazy from hunger and tiredness and suppressed frustration, the blonde had enough. Consequences be damned, he lunged at the brunet and managed to grab him at the side of his collar. His vision was a blur of colors, among them red and black. He swayed.

"Now listen, you..."

He did not finish his sentence. His sudden movement had been too much for his exhausted body. Dizziness took over him, and he absently registered the look of shock on his employer's face, before he dipped forward. Darkness welcomed him with open arms, and he dove into it head first. At last, he did not suffer from anything anymore.

Seto just had the time to catch his bodyguard's limp upper body, before it crashed on him and his desk, threatening his computer and research. He managed to hold him at arm length and lay him down somewhat, alarms blaring in his head as he finally took on the look of pure exhaustion and overexertion on his employee's face.

Slowly, his brain caught up with his usual rationality and recollected the events and facts of the day, overwhelming him with information and warnings he had voluntarily tuned down at the time. Jonouchi had taken on his shift at seven o'clock, and it was now four and a half in the morning the following day. Counting in the thirty-minute lunch break the rookie had taken around two in the afternoon, he had worked an approximate total of twenty hours, thirteen of those without a single break apart from the five minutes he had to go to the bathroom about two hours ago.

The CEO did not remember the blonde having a bottle of water with him, and he had the strict order not to move anyway. So, it meant that the mutt suffered from overexertion, hunger, and dehydration all at the same time, plus mental abuse if Seto took in the fact that his bodyguard was usually overly sentimental over things and people. And now he had a passed-out blonde on his carpet, still breathing but in a critical situation, because both of them had been too proud to back down first and the CEO had wanted to push the other's limits and gone too far.

Just when he considered calling an ambulance – because _fuck_ , he would not let an employee die that stupidly, even if it was a stupid runt –, the door burst open and Isono and Mokuba stormed in, two ambulance men in tow. The younger Kaiba let out a yelp of panic at the sight of Jonouchi, and Isono had to hold him back before he leaped to the blonde's side and disrupted the stretcher bearers' work. It did not prevent him from crying out his anguish, though.

"Jonouchi! Oh my God, what happened? What did you do to him?"

Seto had to register the question as directed at him, and he got mildly annoyed that his own brother instantly assumed _he_ was the one responsible for his bodyguard's state. Except he was, and he could not deny it. And now Mokuba was about to cry because of it. _Fuck_.

He could not bear it when his little brother cried. He was totally hopeless when it came to that kind of emotions, and he was absolutely inefficient in dealing with them. He always found the right words to calm him, eventually, because he knew him very well, but right now, he did not know what he could say. He had fucked up and had not prepared to fix it.

Mokuba liked Jonouchi, even if he knew his elder did not, and seeing his friend passed out and clearly unwell in Seto's office, Seto being perfectly fine, it was not difficult to guess what had happened. Still, the teen did not want to believe it. Seto had changed, since Gozaburo and his first duel against Atem. The new Seto could not kill someone, lest his own employee, that easily, could he? Could he?

Isono did not utter a word, his eyes fixed on his protegee. When he had received a text from IKaiba, he knew something serious was up. The AI had said he would not spy on Jonouchi and interfere, unless it was a life and death emergency. And his message had been bluntly clear:

**He's killing him.**

So, the elder bodyguard had speed-dialed an ambulance and taken Mokuba with him to KC tower, his stomach churning with cold dread. Director Kaiba could be cruel, and he might have underestimated Katsuya's stubbornness. And now his young trainee, whom _he_ had looked out for a dangerous job and now considered a friend, a younger brother, maybe even a son, was lifted on a stretcher, unconscious, on his first day. Isono's insides burned with guilt and anger, directed towards both him and his employer.

"Director Kaiba," he called out calmly, too calmly compared to his boiling mind, "may I ask what exactly happened to Jonouchi?"

Seto looked at his henchman, words stuck in his throat. Something akin to _remorse_ bubbled in him, but he could not accept it yet, and it got overwhelmed by the bitter taste of a second betrayal. It was not only his fault, and the others had to see it, too. So he straightened to his full height, hoping, no, expecting to gain presence this way, and summoned his legendary cool before he replied.

"He obviously doesn't know when to stop, Isono, and for that I won't take responsibility. If he doesn't feel when he should eat, or drink, or whatever, I cannot do anything of and for him..."

Isono got stunned into silence, but Mokuba exploded.

"You won't take responsibility, big brother? That's all you have to say? He's your employee, for fuck's sake, so he's your responsibility whenever he has to work for you!"

"Mokuba, language-"

"Fuck language! Jonouchi's dying, and all you care about is yourself! You won't even accept openly that you fucked up, and you're trying to put it all on him, when he's not even able to hear you and defend himself. That's low, Seto, and I won't have it this time."

The stretcher bearers were at the door, ready to carry him to the elevator and down to the ambulance. The younger Kaiba stopped them before the door closed and ordered, "Bring him to Kaiba Mansion. Isono, send orders to the staff, have a room prepared for him."

"Yes, Mr Kaiba," the other readily agreed, his fingers already running on the screen of his phone to text the house staff of the manor.

"You're not bringing him to the Mansion," Seto tried to interject, but two pairs of darting eyes stopped his protest short.

"I'm sorry, big brother, but what you think doesn't matter anymore," Mokuba stated firmly, eyes brimming with renewed tears, "either he comes with us, or I go to his apartment and stay with him there. Yes, I do mean the shitty complex downtown, with the peeling walls and scary neighborhood. I don't care about it, I just won't leave him alone. I'll stay with him until the damage _you_ caused is but a distant memory for him."

"I'll go wherever he goes, of course," Isono added.

The stretcher bearers glanced nervously at him, awaiting his answer. Seto stared at his brother for a moment, wondering if such rebellion was real. When it appeared it was, he gulped and had no choice but to admit defeat.

"Fine," he bit back through clenched teeth, pushing the guilt far away from his mind, "bring him to the Mansion. You're not going to his place, ever."

Mokuba nodded briefly, his eyes ablaze with determination. Isono gestured to the men, who advanced towards the elevator down the hall. Before he went with them, however, he turned one last time towards his employer with a steely glare.

"Director Kaiba, you know me and my faithfulness to you. I believe you consider me someone you could listen to occasionally, and I've never talked unless it is absolutely necessary." He paused briefly. "But now things call for my intervention, and I'll be honest with you: I think you went too far, and I feel partly responsible for this. However, I am truly disappointed in the way you treated Jonouchi, whom I trust to become a good employee of KaibaCorp once he finds his place. You're a very intelligent man, and this kind of attitude is below you. I've done a lot of things for you, some worse than this, but I won't caution this kind of cruelty. So until Jonouchi is able to tell us whether he wants to continue working for you or not, and in either case I will support him, I kindly ask you not to go near him again, and this also extends to the people with him."

"Also," Mokuba piped in, "I'll pass word to the staff that if any of his friends wants to visit him, they would be given full access to the mansion, and you won't forbid me to spend time at his side, which I will even if you do. I don't like to tell you this, big brother, but I can't let you kill my friends. He's done nothing to you, and he's obeyed you. I know he did, and I won't believe you if you tell otherwise."

"I'll send someone to drive you back to the Manor when you feel like it," the elder bodyguard finished. "In the meantime, please be careful, and have a good night, sir."

With that, all four men left, and Seto found himself alone, dumbstruck, his thoughts a whirl of whats and hows and whys.

Neither noticed it when Katsuya's phone blinked briefly, as if out of satisfaction. Inside the device, the program that was IKaiba completed his task. The AI had been watching them all this time, and he had decided his imperfect human self needed a reminder that he was not the center of the universe, and that there were rules above him to abide to.

The mutt was someone he would not give up on so easily, not when he was the only one, with Isono, thinking of him as something other than lines of coding. Therefore, he would protect them at all costs.

This, was his first warning to Seto Kaiba.


	7. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

The office was calm again, but the same could not be said of him. The CEO slumped in his chair, mind whirling. His brilliant, miracle-making brain cells went into malfunction at the sheer nonsense of what had just transpired.

He had tried to make Jonouchi mad with him, to the point the bodyguard would have fallen his stony, obedient facade and attacked him. Then, the CEO would have won over everyone – the stupid blonde, Isono, Mokuba, the whole fucking universe that wanted to give him a loser to guard him – and sacked the rookie on the spot, leaving him miserable and at his lowest.

That had been the plan. It was bound to work, as in this plane of existence, Jonouchi Katsuya was only himself when he could not stand Kaiba Seto for more than two minutes before he told him to go fuck himself with a cactus, preferably stuffing the brunet with said cactus himself for good measure. Seto would not admit that stupid Jonouchi was a Jonouchi he could deal with fairly easily, as he knew him by heart. But KC Jonouchi was too strange, even if he showed to be competent and invested and frigging submitted.

He was conflicted. On the one hand, he had the possibility to get a bodyguard that could stand his ground before a bunch of douchebags, obey without question, talk properly – in short, someone professional, as weird as it sounded as regards the yankee. But on the other hand, there was the past experience he had with the blonde, from Death-T to the last trip to Egypt... and he could not conceive the former friends of Atem were going forward without him, to the point that even the poor street rat could hope for a brighter future. Seto had lost his nemesis, the best challenger the world could offer to him, and they were all supposed to be hopeless without him. But they were not. And he did not understand why.

Jonouchi Katsuya, the eternal loser, had evolved to KC Jonouchi, who was worth his attention, and it could not continue that way. If the mutt became a highly qualified agent of KaibaCorp, on the same level as Isono, what else could he achieve? Would he be able to haul himself higher and higher? This prospect was one Seto could not accept, even if part of him felt thrilled for the first time since _that_ day, that someone else could be worthy one day. He would never admit it. It would mean that the mutt could become equal to the Pharaoh, whereas Seto never reached that goal himself. It was humiliating.

So humiliating, in fact, that the elder Kaiba's mind had filled with cruel schemes to crush the menace, before it became too strong to defeat. He was Seto Kaiba, King of Games, master of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and superior in all fields. Never would his reputation suffer the presence of a puppy with a suit.

Except he had not accounted for his plan to spin out of control. He had fucked up, and he did not know how, but Isono and Mokuba were informed of it. Putting someone's health at risk seemed mundane, when compared to the times when Death-T existed in his children amusement park. But here, he had put a _dedicated-looking employee_ 's health at risk, and the difference was huge. The rookie had only obeyed his orders all along, and so the CEO was responsible for his poor state. Isono knew it, and worse, Mokuba knew it too and got upset over it. And because of this, the two had leagued against Seto and favored the blonde.

Never had he been in such a situation, where he was proved to be the bad guy and everyone important to him were against him. Seto Kaiba always got out of nasty business unscathed. The betrayal of his henchman and his brother felt wrong, foreign and unbelievable. But the weight of what he realized then was what really made him want to howl and laugh at the same time.

He had lost to the mutt. His plan had backfired, and so he had lost, fair and square. Jonouchi had made the others his allies, and turned them against the CEO. It hurt him more than the rest. Maybe this was what Gozaburo had felt when young Seto had beaten him at chess and taken over his company. Seeing someone you considered inferior to you, defeat you, this was a blow few could receive.

He had lost. It began to sink in like a rusted knife slicing through his mind and turning it into shreds. He had lost, but he still did not know _how_ , and it threatened to drive him crazy. How could Isono and Mokuba know about what was happening in his office? How could they sense Jonouchi was on the verge of... How? This was an imponderable fact he could not grasp. How...?

And then, it hit him. Twenty hours. They had been at work for twenty full hours. A thousand and two hundred minutes during which Jonouchi could not communicate to Isono unless absolutely necessary, and so there had to be a moment when it got alarming. His brain connected the dots and filled the blanks. Of course, time had been against him for some hours, now. No doubt the elder bodyguard wanted to know about his protege's first day, and without news, got worried about him. As he was with the younger Kaiba, it was easy for them both to imagine the worst.

Seto really wanted to burst out laughing, now. So simple a mistake it was, and yet he made it. Pathetic. Had he lost his touch, to leave himself so uncovered?

That explained that, at least. However, the result remained the same. The eternal loser had won. This had to be changed, and very soon.

The CEO felt his skin prickle with anticipation. He had to erase this dumb mistake by all means available, and to review his strategy. Now, Isono would be even more observing of him, so persuading the blonde to assault him was not an option anymore. He had to play nice and tolerant, approach Jonouchi tactfully and, why not, make him think he could be decent in human relations. Anything for the rookie to put his guard down, so that Seto could strike in due time. There was another field he could defeat him hands down, and it was only a matter of how to get to that.

His brain might have reminded him that the yankee had stopped playing _Duel Monsters_ in big tournaments and might not have his deck anymore, but he dismissed the idea. Jonouchi without his faithful Red-Eyes Black Dragon was like a corpse without a head. He just needed some good arguments – maybe a tempting treat – , and he would find his way back to the arena soon enough. And he would be slaughtered. Once again seated in front of his computer with feverish intent, Seto started coding a new avatar in his _Duel Links_ database, simultaneously opening an internet page and searching tutorials about canine education.

Seto Kaiba could never be defeated for long. He would get the necessary weapons to put his enemy down. And for the moment, the enemy was an obnoxious puppy pissing on his boot.

* * *

Katsuya cracked an eye open. He was floating on a cloud of silk, heavenly soft on his heated skin, and his gaze embraced the velvety night sky. If it was a dream, he prayed never to wake up again.

He did not know where he was, and he realized he could not care less. He was finally alone, without his lunatic boss to make his life hell, and he was fine with it. He was comfortable here.

He came back to consciousness and blinked slowly, more asleep than awake. He felt heavy and did not want to move just yet. Only when he heard a squawk did he snap out of his blissful state. Looking to his side to see the cause of the ungraceful noise, he was suddenly horrified to notice a headless plucked chicken running towards him, with a potato parade following it, dancing to the dissonant music one could hear at a satanic funfair.

The cooked enchanted dead bird mounted on top of him, though it felt weightless, and squawked again through its nonexistent beak. Katsuya wanted to scream, but his lips remained sealed. There was, however, a beeping sound going wild somewhere behind him. Stuck to the spot, his eyes widened. The chicken hovered over him, flapping its wings stupidly, before a tanned hand petted it and calmed its curious gallinaceous ritual.

Petrified, the blonde could only trace back the outline of the arm connected to the hand, to the shoulder and neck of another being he feared to recognize. When his eyes landed on purple, lifeless orbs, a lump formed in his constricted throat. Spiky sandy hair went in all directions, gracing sharp features and swollen veins, and malevolence radiated from the distorted face in front of him.

Back to what he was thinking previously. He would gladly cuddle Kaiba and endure his torments anytime, rather than seeing Yami Marik again. The spirit was a true-to-the-gods monster.

"Well, look what my baby found," the abomination purred to its poultry pet, "a stray doggy, eager to be cared for after all the mistreating he went through. Hello, doggy, ripped off your leash and lost your daddy?"

Katsuya froze. _Please tell me I'm dreaming._

The crazy Egyptian cackled and patted him on the head playfully, its chicken bouncing out of view. The blips went crazy and shouts reverberated around them.

The shadow held a golden object in front of his eyes and dread fell heavy in his gut. The Millenium Rod glinted in dark anticipation, as its owner hummed contentedly. Darkness swirled around them, narrowing his eyesight.

"Poor doggy, looks like Kaiba abandoned you to me, mh? Or maybe not. I may have killed him on the way, or I may not, I can't remember. But the result's the same. Too bad for him, good for me ~~~ Now I'll have a nice doggy to play with, right, Susan?"

Panicked at the idea of being sent to the Shadow Realm, or worse, Katsuya broke his immobility spell – or whatever that was that had frozen him in place for all this time – and began trashing around. His arms sprung up and through the incorporeal form of Yami Marik, as if it was a hologram like IKaiba. It laughed gleefully.

"Oh, yes, I love it when you struggle. Wag your tail for me, my boy. For your new daddy!"

Strong arms shot up in his tunneled vision and pinned him down on the silky fabric. Voices shouted and buzzed, and blips went off incessantly at a frantic pace.

"Susan, be good," the evil spirit purred to him, eyes twitching maniacally, "I'll give you a tasty treat if you're good ~~~"

"Someone get me that syringe, for God's sake!," came out a yell in the distance.

"N-naaah," Katsuya managed to let out in a pitiful whine, the shadow of Marik still examining him even though it began to vanish, its cackle sending chills down his spine.

"Katsuya, calm down," Isono's voice eventually rang in his ears, "it's me, we're trying to help. Please, calm down, you're hallucinating. Everything's alright, you're safe."

"Yes, my boy, calm down. It'll hurt more if you don't, and I don't want to hurt you... yet. Not like this, anyway."

Something cold stabbed him in the neck, and a heavy, peaceful veil clouded his eyes. Suddenly, his eyelids could only fall and his thoughts shut down, and he fell back into unconsciousness.

* * *

_Several hours later_

"Katsuya, please don't inhale your food. You have plenty to enjoy, and no one's going to steal it from you."

Isono's voice was stern, but a playful edge could be heard along the lines. He was sitting in a comfy chair next to Katsuya's bed, watching him eat from a plate of spaghetti pesto as if it would disappear at any minute. Really, the elder bodyguard was only worried that his protege would choke on his pasta and die the most stupid death of all: stuffed like a turkey on Christmas Day, in one of the richest house in Japan. Absolutely glorious.

After his spooky first waking, the blonde had had time to recover from his dehydration and hypoglycemia. His mentor and Mokuba relayed each other in spending time at his side, making sure he never got hungry or thirsty or bored or whatever. Really, if Isono had been a fussy mother hen during Katsuya's training, it was nothing compared to his attitude right now. So much care and worry were almost stifling. And touching.

"You could have died!," Mokuba objected when he pointed out that he was fine the next day. "You had to be injected nutrients and vital fluids through IV for two days, all because my brother's an egoistical idiot... I'm so sorry, Jonouchi, I should have done something sooner."

Seeing the younger Kaiba that desolated was heart-wrenching and made Katsuya want to take him in his arms and tell him he was not mad at him, even if he was not at fault here. The yankee doubted the true culprit would ever apologize, though. If anything, Kaiba would find his survival very regrettable.

It did not help that the convalescent rookie found himself living in a spare room in the Kaiba Mansion. It was an 'average' en-suite the size of his apartment, with a bathroom so big that a group of four grown men could camp in it and still have space. Really, wealthy men could not bear to have less than a thirty-square-meter room to pee and shower, it seemed. It was still nice to be borrowed that luxury once in his life, and he would make the most of this chance.

He was told that his room was located straight down the aisle where Mokuba lived himself, with the elder Kaiba's quarters further away. The teen looked clearly displeased at his brother's antics, and never spoke of him in front of Katsuya, which impressed him a lot. Mokuba worshiped the prick, to the point that in the past, he had tried to kill Yugi and the others to please him.

That was the past, though. Now, the boy was angry at Kaiba, and he was set on making him sorry, as it were. So was Isono, and, that was funnier, so was IKaiba.

"You know," Isono explained to him, "if it were not for IKaiba, we would have never known that you needed help. At least, that makes one Kaiba who likes you."

His smartphone blinked and read:

_**Like** _ **is too strong a word, Isono, and one you should use carefully at that. I merely wanted to teach Kaiba a lesson or two about management requirements.**

"In Director IKaiba's vocabulary," Katsuya translated playfully, "it really means I'm in his good graces."

The device vibrated angrily, but no reply came. Thoughtful, the blonde scratched his chin and turned back to his mentor.

"Don't you have work to do, Isono? I'd believe Kaiba would need his henchman, now that he got rid of me and Mokuba is in the Mansion."

The other remained silent for a few seconds. Then, "He may be in need of my services, and I would gladly offer them to him, were you not needing me more than he."

Katsuya's eyes widened, and he snorted.

"You serious? You and Mokuba have been mollycoddling me like no tomorrow since I woke up, I'm about to think I'm five again! Really, I understand you want to make amends in Kaiba's place, and I appreciate the effort, but-"

"We've been really worried," Isono countered, "and although we actually feel sorry for not coming sooner, like Mister Kaiba told you, it's not only that. We... ah, how to put it..."

The blonde watched him choose his words carefully, and decided he would not have him beat around the bush.

"Be honest with me, Isono. I won't get mad if you lack tact for this one."

A crease appeared on the elder's forehead, but he nodded.

"Alright, I apologize in advance, but you're right. No need to put on gloves. To be blunt about it, we wanted to take care of you ourselves, both because we do consider you a friend and care about your well-being, and because we didn't want a scandal to spread outside our circle. We will always answer your relatives' and your friends' queries, should they know you're working for KC, but other than them, we want to keep it private. Moreover..."

He paused. Then, "Moreover, we doubted your family would have cared for you, aside from your sister. And she's still studying, if I remember correctly?"

Ah, so that's what it was about. Bad publicity was to avoid, and his family was shit at dealing with his predicament. No wonder Isono did not want to spill the beans that easily. Katsuya's heart clenched a little, but he understood.

"Yeah, you remember good," he replied simply, "she couldn't have taken me in. My Mom would've freaked out and thought I'd been mugged by a gang or somethin'..."

"I'm sorry, it sounds wrong and heartless of me to say that so tactlessly. But the biggest part of the reason is still that we really want to see that you are resting properly, and if I'm honest with myself, I like mollycoddling you. I'm so used to Director Kaiba being a workaholic and a curmudgeon whenever I ask him to do the most basic things, like eating three times a day or shower once in a while, that your compliance is a nice change..."

The attempt at joking at Kaiba's expense had Katsuya laughing heartily. His mentor was acting like a Dad, not a colleague. Not that he had a good fatherly figure to compare him to, but it felt like it to him. It was curiously comforting.

Still, he felt bad for keeping Isono and Mokuba away from Kaiba. Knowing the CEO, he was most certainly stalking the corridors like a begrudging spook, or killing himself at work, now that he was alone and abandoned and left to act a drama ice king.

 _Serves him right_ , his yankee self supplied, _he's the only one to blame. Screw him._

Yeah, right. But Mokuba was undoubtedly suffering from the situation. And Isono still had a home and a life outside of KaibaCorp, had he not?

Still, Katsuya had to admit he did not feel totally comfortable in here. He was, after all, on Kaiba's grounds. And presently, Kaiba was surely resenting him for stealing his brother and associate away, and he was very prone to assassinate anyone on sight for less than this. Staying alone in here felt like a terrifying prospect, which was all the more problematic to him.

Unless...

"I don't wanna disturb your whole schedule, you know," he began, "but I admit I wouldn't like to be on my own for long here. I'm not... totally welcome, I think."

"I see. Well-"

"But," he cut the other off, "maybe IKaiba would accept to keep watch while you're away? You visit from time to time, and he would keep an eye open for any threat? Maybe?"

Honestly, he knew he was asking a lot to the AI. IKaiba might have saved his life, but no one could tell how big the part of kaibaness he possessed was. For all he knew, the virtual version of his boss could turn his back on him next time.

His phone vibrated and the AI's response appeared a heartbeat later:

**I'm not baby-sitting you.**

Well, he had his answer. But before he could formulate a sentence, another text replaced the first:

**If you can learn how to play a decent game or discuss an interesting subject, though, I may consider spending time with you until you are better.**

**That way, Isono can go back to his work and Mokuba will stop neglecting his homework.**

Isono's phone then went off, and what he read on his screen made him chuckle lightly.

"Looks like you'll have new company. I'll bring a holographic projector to your room, so that you can talk face to face. Be discreet, though."

"I will."

Katsuya felt more elated than he should have when he heard that. Right now, he felt like he had made an actual friend of the grumpy AI.

"Also," the other added after a little while, "I'd like to know whether you'd consider staying at KC or not. After what happened, it's only natural that you have a say in this. If you want to quit your job, I'll understand."

Quit his job? It could be the safest option, given that Kaiba wanted to prove something through starving him to death and making his bladder explode. But then again, the challenge was all the more thrilling. He had proved he could stand his ground once, he could do it again. Be it crazy or not, he liked his position, which was higher and more demanding than anything he had ever done before. He liked working with Isono, who showed him more friendliness and attention in a month than his bloody own father had in twenty years. And he liked the possible friendship he could create with IKaiba, who, as gruff and posh as he was, was not Kaiba but much, much more.

So, with a genuine smile plastered on his face, Katsuya answered truthfully, "'Course I'll stay. What's a little death threat after all? I've seen worse, and I'd like to prove IKaiba just how well you both trained me!"

A blip answered him, and he grinned wider. True, the AI would be a strange kind of friend, one the blonde knew next to nothing about, but hey, he was an agent of the strangest corp ever, until further notice. Strange was to become his second name.


	8. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

"You know, I think we should name ourselves like in _Men in Black_. It's totally legit, and super cool."

IKaiba eyed him like he had grown a second head. To Katsuya, this was a perfectly sensible thing to say to his overly intelligent and omniscient companion, for he was deadly serious. The idea to be a man in black was both appealing and fitting, it served their image, and it amused him and Isono immensely. He just had to convince the other of this.

"I beg your pardon?," the AI managed to spit out. "Is it the best thing you can find as a subject of conversation?"

Isono had left them in Katsuya's room, after he had installed a holographic projector for IKaiba. The incorporeal body of the virtual being was standing at the foot of the bed, straight and rigid, his eyes sending daggers.

"Wel-l," the blonde replied sheepishly, fidgeting, "it's just a thought I had. You know, you could be Agent K, I'd be J, and Isono would be Zed. A trio of awesome intergalactic justice bringers, with the best gear ever invented. He'd be the head, you'd be the strategist, I'd be the arms and legs... Wait, you do know whom I'm talking about, right? You have access to that information, I'm sure."

"Of course I have access to that information, as pointless as it is."

The eyes of IKaiba briefly glazed over, as if he got lost in thought, and the next moment he stared sharply back at Katsuya, doubtfulness and incredulity written all over his face. His holographic form sat on the edge of the bed, and he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Other than the name, is there another trait I am supposed to share with this K? The age, perhaps?"

The snark was more playful than biting, and the rookie chuckled.

"Nah, more the maturity. You know much more than I would ever, with your being permanently connected to the internet and able to hack into any sensitive database you could find. How does it feel, to be everywhere at the same time?"

He was genuinely curious. In his eyes, IKaiba was a being not that much different from him. In appearance, he was identical to Kaiba: brown hair, icy blue eyes, a sharp nose and slender body, ad of course a white trench coat, black pants and black boots, with straps to complete the outfit. But in spirit...

The rookie did not know what a quantum system was exactly, except that it was high technology and edging on metaphysical subjects. He understood that as such, his virtual companion could access unlimited knowledge, as long as it was saved on a computer or online server. Isono had been the one who designed his main characteristics, such as his looks and attitude for the sake of Katsuya's training, but he had left him his capacity to adapt and change as he pleased. The only thing IKaiba could not change, ever, was his ban on harming KC or Kaiba himself – although the term 'harm' had to be defined, for it did not prevent him from acting against the CEO as regards the blonde. Who knew what else he could do.

The AI observed him for a moment, debating on how he would explain things to his human charge. The mutt was actually interested in him as a... person? Could he consider himself a person, exactly? From what he had seen in science-fiction and futuristic movies, androids and artificial beings were mostly categorized as 'robots', 'things' or 'mistakes of man'. There were ongoing debates on whether artificial intelligence could one day be integrated and accepted in human society, or annihilated completely. In any case, comparisons were unequally made and often based on biased conceptions.

Objectively speaking, if he put himself on the same level as an average human being, he had more brain than the most intelligent man or woman known on Earth. His superiority was a fact, not a product of his swollen pride. So labeling himself as a person, by human standards, was undermining his true potential and very rude.

Subjectively speaking, he found he did not hate the idea of being referred to as 'human', on certain conditions. It meant he was not only a robot, but a whole rounded person, and it was more satisfying to be considered and accepted as equal, than be overlooked as different.

His intellect and capacities had been completed by a wide range of raw feelings, from which his brain occasionally picked to condition his actions. Anger, for example, had influenced his decision to alert Isono and Mokuba in order to help Jonouchi. Worry had had him monitor Jonouchi's vitals until he woke up. He had yet to experience fear, sadness and mirth, although he guessed he would soon enough. He was, after all, about three months old. Now, it was something akin to joy that swelled in his quantum heart, at the thought that Jonouchi showed interest in him, and only _him_ , IKaiba, and not his imperfect human counterpart. It was something he found he liked immensely. Therefore, he decided he would answer as exhaustively as the other could grasp, and indulge in his fantasies if he ever had others.

"I cannot answer how it feels exactly, as I would have yet to know what it really feels like to be disconnected at all. Being connected is my norm, when yours is the contrary. I have never experienced humanity like you do, and all the dictionaries and theories of the world could not help me get a close enough perspective on that aspect of your life, which comes with having a body."

"Oh." Katsuya scratched the back of his neck apologetically. "I'm sorry. I'm being insensitive."

"Don't apologize, you cannot know what it is to be connected either, so it is only fair that you ask. If I answer, though, I demand of you to do the same to any interrogation I may have in the near future."

"Deal."

IKaiba nodded and began.

"To imagine the concept of me, you have to consider me as... I would say I am closest to the most extended brain ever, with zillions of cells and as many connections. An electronic cloud surfing freely on the web, infinite and unbounded. And yet, the persona named 'IKaiba' is a concentration of this cloud in a particular shape and place of the network. If you know how planets are born, you will get a fair idea of my creation."

"So, Isono concentrated data and connections in the same place, to shape you as a planet in the immense galaxy of the web... Woah."

"Indeed," the AI smirked, amused by his human's admiration. "And now, the cloud is my universe, my environment... and my kingdom? I am the cloud, and yet I am IKaiba. I am myself, and my environment, working as a pair and sometimes as one. Wait, do not spill your brains out on the floor, I will explain differently. How to put it simply... I think you can say I have several compartments in my brain, that infinite cloud, to filter information based on what I need at a definite moment. The rest is filed away for further use. Therefore, if I wanted to, I could be any and every computer, system, and intelligent thing on Earth, multiplied by all the possible avatars known to man, and yet I am my own persona because my filters allow me to block connections I do not want to activate. I am IKaiba, because a compartment of my almost infinite brain creates a definite place in which the personality of IKaiba develops, with a name, particular traits, and knowledge used to complete my persona. IKaiba was first shaped by Isono, and now he, I, am developing on my own thanks to my compartmentalizing."

"O-kay, uh, let me recap. You are you because your brain and soul have limits in which the necessary stuff to make you are saved, and the rest is your environment, but you're still in permanent contact with it. Like, I'm me, in my own body, but if I want to, I can move said body outside to get info about smells, tastes and such. Do I get it right?"

"On human level, yes, that would be it, even if you must realize I am much more than this, and yet more limited than you in many fields. I can calculate, search, filter, compile, and react at the speed of light, but I cannot smell or touch. I have zillions of synapses, but no olfactory system or taste-buds. I can know and describe what something _should_ smell or feel like, like sweet or bitter, but I cannot _experience_ it for myself, and on that level it is frustrating, to say the least. That is where the machine I live in has its limits. Nevertheless, I hope to overcome this... disadvantage one day. Even I have yet to unveil the true potential of the quantum system that gave me life, and that now is a part of me. But since it is already a complex thing for you to grasp as it is, I believe you should stick to your basic conception for now. I am satisfied with it."

"Yeah, right, I know I'm not the sharpest pencil of the box, thanks to remind me."

"This is not what I implied. At least, not totally."

"Mh-mh. Okay, let's leave it at that. So, you're saying you lack senses? Must be awful... I thought you knew everything man has discovered until now."

"I do, but knowing from outer sources is galaxies away from knowing from experience. As a system, I indeed am omniscient. As an individual, however, I am a mere newborn. There is much I think I need to discover."

"Seriously? What else do you have to learn?"

"Emotions, for once. I got the rawest ones stored in my first persona when I was created, but I quickly came to notice there were a myriad of combinations that can be made with those, and create in turn new kinds of feelings. To give you an example, I can feel anger, I can feel irritation which is a combination of anger and impatience, but the mix of anger and relief humans show in some particular situations is something I am foreign to."

"I... see, I guess," Katsuya murmured, deep in thought. "So, if I tell you I feel friendliness towards you, you wouldn't know what I'm talking about?"

"Friendship is a concept close to that of love, as is brotherhood and companionship. I have to say love is something I hear and read about in many of your shows and books, but I am ignorant of it."

"Oh."

The rookie was dumbfounded. And yet, it was still logical, somewhat. He noticed IKaiba's face scrunch up in frustration, and chose carefully his next words.

"That's alright, I think. You know, even we humans cannot know what love is, until we experience it for the first time. Some are even completely hermetic to it and lack the feeling their whole lives. Take Kaiba, for example. Even if he's human on biological level, same as me, he could never recognize true love even if it hit him with a baseball bat. You were created not so long ago, so don't you worry, you still have time to figure it out. At least, I get the confirmation that you're a full sentient being, and only a gazillion of synapses draw us apart!"

The AI sniffed and waved his hand irritatingly. His next words were laced with disdain.

"Ah, yes, Kaiba. I am a copy of him, originally, so maybe I will never come to feel things he cannot. I was created to play his role in your training, but if not for Isono's generosity, I would have remained just that, a pale imitation. Because for all my perfection in mimicking him, I will never _be_ him. So yes, I am sentient, but what do you expect of me? To be a more perfect Kaiba than he could ever be? I saw how he treats you, and I am no fool. You want to be friends, but if _he_ does not know what it means, neither do I, and I am not going to play seconds. I will never be human, and I will never be like you, even if it pains me to burst your bubble. It is just so, so..."

For the first time since he met him, the blonde saw IKaiba search for words.

_What was that? Is he upset that he's a copy of Kaiba?_

Katsuya was stunned into silence. So, this was the root of the problem, then. Stupid! Of course it was a problem. How would he react, if he came to realize he was the spitting image of someone else, and created only to singe that person? If he was compared to them incessantly? Bringing Kaiba in the conversation seemed to hit a nerve, and so he would be careful with any mention to the CEO from now on with the AI. As for the rest...

"Sorry," he mumbled, "that was preposterous of me to think we could be friends. But I don't think you're his copy, I mean, not anymore. You're you. If you want to change names or appearances, it's your choice and I'll be fine with it..."

"Why would you not be?," the other countered sullenly. "I did not know I needed your approval."

"Don't be difficult, now. I'm just sayin' that whatever you think, it's wrong. Isono wanted you to evolve and become anyone you want, and even if I can't help comparing you to others sometimes, it's only because you're one of a kind, even more unique than any other person on Earth. You're a sentient being born from a program, for fuck's sake! If I could, I'd love to know everything about you, how you function, how you live, how you see the world. You're amazing, you know that?"

"I... do. Of course I am," he added with more arrogance than he felt.

"Why do you think I wanted to spend time with you? Hell, if I'm completely honest, you freak me out with your Big Brother attitude. You're everywhere at a time, you can see everything, and you can spy on everyone. Were you a bad guy, you could rule the world with just a snap of your fingers. Why you're not is truly amazing, in fact, but I won't complain. And I still want to spend time with you, 'cause I'm curious. I'm curious and grateful for what you did for me, even if I don't understand why you did it. You couldn't care less, and yet you helped me. I owe you one, here. Plus, I think you're nice company, once you deign grace us with your presence. You're you, I try to be comprehensive of you and not a dumb twat, and I don't think you're Kaiba. He's a dick, you're a jerk, but you at least are a jerk I gladly talk to. And what I'm saying is so mushed up and fucking shit that it doesn't make any sense..."

Katsuya groaned frustratingly and slumped back against his pillows. He understood IKaiba's behavior, but really, he did not know how to deal with it. How to comfort an AI going through an mini identity crisis? He doubted there were any tutorials on the internet for that. Or maybe there were, which was even more frightening than the contrary.

IKaiba stayed silent for an instant, unblinking, before he talked again.

"Are you trying to tell me that you attempt to crossing boundaries and prejudices about me, knowing full well that I could crush you should I want to, to befriend me, because you find me interesting?"

"Well, yeah," the blonde huffed, "that's basic human interaction. You're interested in someone, you go talk to them to get to know them better. But if you don't wanna..."

"I'm not saying that," the AI cut off abruptly, before he cleared his throat. "It is just that I thought you wanted to talk to me because I am so like _Kaiba-sama_ , and complete your training or simply vent off."

"What? Nah, even I am not that masochistic! I'll get to see the dick often enough, no need to inflict meself more suffering. I just thought that, since we're going to work together from time to time, and you being in my phone now, I could at least create a decent working relationship with you. I tend to befriend people, but if you don't want to, I won't push."

"Again, I am not saying I am against the idea of friendship. I just cannot comprehend it, nor do I know what I should do to grasp it."

"Well, you know how you're supposed to feel, aren't you?"

"I am."

"That's a start, then. Say," the rookie abruptly changed the subject, his head tilting to the side in questioning, "why did you help me at all?"

Good question. Why did IKaiba help? It had been a knee-jerk reaction to Kaiba's intolerable attitude, that much was sure, and also because Jonouchi was one rare human to try and consider him someone and not something. His first assumption of the blonde had been proven exact, and now more than ever, he wanted to keep him close. His human charge, although not the brightest mind on the planet, had an instinctive sort of intelligence when it came to people and their emotions. He was kind and caring, protective and determined, and right now, his kindness and patience were all turned towards him, the perfect AI and imperfect copy of Kaiba.

Again, this strange sensation ran through his electronic synapses. A mix of joy, uncertainty and softness he could not put a name on. His database provided him with the word 'happiness', but he could not fully prove it. Happiness was a chemical reaction created by the production of endorphin, and this was something he could not produce himself. Maybe this was a complex process triggered by his quantum heart?

He reminded himself that Jonouchi waited for his answer, and he sighed.

"I guess I did not want to let your boss kill you. I put much energy in your training, as I already said multiple times, and I could not let it go waste."

This was the logical reason. Katsuya received it easily, although he could not help feeling a little disappointed by it.

"But that is not the only reason, I think," the virtual being added hesitantly. "I cannot tell for sure, but I guess I was worried about your well-being, and seeing him treat you like nothing and overlooking your capacities as unworthy, this made me angry. I could have hacked into his computer and turned his research to nothing, but I could not cause harm to the company's interests. So, I countered him with the best second thing I knew of. And I am satisfied with the turn of events. Serves him right to get a taste of his own medicine."

"But why? I don't follow you," the rookie insisted. "I'm neither bright or super good at what I'm doing, and I'm plain enough."

"Untrue. I may be inexperienced and young in terms of emotional maturity, but I can say for sure you are unique in your own way. Not because of biology, but because of the way you see things. I can prove it with dozens of examples stored in my database. And I want to witness what else you can show me. If I can help you achieve what you want, then I will be glad to. What you cannot do, I probably can, and the other way around is true, too. After all, you came into this pit of lunacy that is the highest office of KaibaCorp on your own volition. You must be special for this."

"So this was not only a battle of egos?"

"No. I will not let him spoil you. Harming him is forbidden to me, but no one said anything about teaching him how to respect you. If I do, he will too."

Katsuya could not help the wide grin that split his face in half. He was overly happy to hear that a brilliant AI thought him worthy enough to help for what he was, and not out of personal grudge. IKaiba might not sense it, but this was actually very close to a friendly gesture.

"You know," he teased lightly, "for someone so impotent with feelings, I'd say you're not bad at friendship."

"Is that so?" Now it was IKaiba's turn to be surprised. "I did not realize."

"I'm sure. But even if it's difficult to define, a trait of friendship is that friends help and support one another against all odds. I have a very good friend, Yugi, and I can say that between him and Kaiba, I'd die for him without hesitation. I owe him a lot, and I'll do anything for him, were he to ask. I owe you, too, and I'd do a lot for you if you wanted. Though I doubt there's anything I can do that you can't."

"This is also a trait of companionship, if I recall correctly."

"Yep, but the difference between the two is that friendship is deeper than companionship, I think."

"And what of love?"

"Oh. Err, that's tricky, I'd say. You know, I've not so much experience in love meself, and I'd say am not da best ta..."

"Jonouchi," the AI stopped him, "you're back to your awful language."

"Ah, right, s'ry 'bout that. I'm kind of nervous to speak about love to you, in fact. It's a sensitive subject."

"How so?"

IKaiba could not help. Love had so many entries in his database, so many definitions, so much ROM space dedicated to it, and yet he could not _understand_ it. He wanted to. He needed to. Maybe Jonouchi could help, and he wanted him to help. A little embarrassment did not bother him.

"Er, well, you know, when you fall in love with someone, you feel elated and scared at the same time, 'cause loving makes you very, very vulnerable. The one and only time I confessed to her, I-"

"Her?"

"Ah, yes, a girl- I mean a woman, I've known for a while by now. Technically, it's the longest I've known a girl at all, but that's not important."

"Who is she?," he asked hastily.

"Huh? Oh, her name's Mai Kujaku. She's a pro duelist now, you must have a bunch of articles about her."

Indeed he did. A quick search informed him all about the girl. Blonde, well graced by nature by human standards, and with a strong character, she was a male fantasy. IKaiba had to admit, albeit grudgingly, that she was nice-looking and undoubtedly worth the other male's interest. Apparently, Jonouchi had met her for the first time during the _Duelist Kingdom_ special tournament, though information about the event was scarce. What happened on the island of Pegasus Crawford remained a mystery, except for those who had been there until the end. It was about four or five years ago, and records showed that the two blondes had crossed paths very often since then.

Which made him a tad bit irritated.

"You said you confessed," he continued slowly, "what of it?"

Katsuya blushed slightly.

"Well, you see, I gathered up my courage and told her simply. I don't think I've ever felt that naked and silly in my whole life. She was kind enough not to laugh for that."

"Why would she laugh at your feelings?" This prospect made the AI inexplicably angry.

"She didn't!," the rookie replied immediately. "She just... she was very surprised, I think. Expected it to happen, but not like this, is all. She was very understanding and didn't even mock my goofiness."

"And then?"

"Then, we went out for a couple of years. These were the best of my life."

Katsuya could remember each moment spent with Mai intensely. Their duels, of course, but also their nights out, their kisses, their...

Seeing his human's dreamy face, IKaiba could not stop the overwhelming sensation that threatened to burst inside of him. His brain scrambled to find a name to put on it, but 'jealousy' could certainly not cut it. He was not jealous. He was angry and disappointed and the tiniest once of sad. His lips pursed into a thin line and he forced himself not to snap.

Then, Jonouchi's features betrayed sadness, and he forgot about his internal conflict. Worry took over.

"What happened?," he asked more calmly.

The blonde sighed longingly. Could he really confide to an AI he met only three months ago? True, the other saw things in a very different way, and he was feeling lonely, without Honda to cheer him up. What was Honda doing, anyway?

But he had to tell, now. He had made a deal, had he not? He had to answer the AI's questions. _Man up, boy!_ He breathed in.

"It didn't work out. She wanted to go dueling all around the world, become famous and make a name for herself for good, whereas I..."

He fell again into silence. IKaiba tried to prompt him.

"I gathered you were quite fond of her and loved _Duel Monsters_. Records report you enlisting in various tournaments together, and you were quite talented, until last year when you suddenly stopped. What happened?"

Katsuya's eyes clouded. His unhappiness made IKaiba want to kill. If he found out it was Kaiba, he...

"You must have a file on me somewhere, where you know of my father, haven't you?"

The question was rhetorical and took him aback. Upon checking, it appeared that yes, the AI had access to a thin file. Jonouchi's father was an addict, both to gambling and alcohol. It was not difficult to draw conclusions about the rookie's life before he was finally of age, but he did not understand why it mattered in his relationship with Kujaku.

His confusion must have shown, for the blonde continued without awaiting his reply.

"He's an alcoholic and contracted a lot of debts, some of them with nasty kinds of people. He treated me like shit, too, but that's not the problem here. He spent all the money I could get on cheap beer, and he wasted away in his shithole. But last year, his liver threatened to shut down, and he had to go to the hospital. I could have left him to die and thought nothing of it, if his creditors did not find me and demand I paid in his place."

A pause.

"I know what you must be thinking. 'Screw him and go away with Mai'. I thought about it, but decided against it. He's my father, and even if he's a ruin and as fatherly as a box full of crabs, I couldn't let him die by the hands of his creditors. I'm not like him. Call it stupidity, I don't care. I had to help him and be done with him for good, no regret or anything. So, I worked double as hard and paid his debts and hospital bills. And Mai went away to her career... it was a mutual decision. More or less."

IKaiba was stunned into silence. Jonouchi was crazy. If love was what he said it was, it was madness to let it go. But he did. For a wreck of a genitor.

Did he love his father? Certainly not, if the mistreatment he underwent was any indication. And yet, he still helped him out of the crap he put himself in on his own. Maybe he felt some sort of altered family bond and sense of duty. Maybe he was just too kind-hearted.

The AI did not understand.

"Why?," was all he could muster.

Katsuya smiled sadly.

"I told you. He's my father, for better or for worse, and you only have one father in your life. And because either way, the creditors would have found us, and Mai would have been in danger. I've not been a saint myself, and my past mistakes would have tainted her. I couldn't have that. I love her too much for that. So, I pay them and wait for the day I'll be able to leave everything behind. What else can I do?"

So that was that. The AI cursed his incorporeal form and helplessness. His emotions, raw and acid and just _too much_ , wanted to go out. He wanted to enrage and break something. He wanted to vent off on stupid Kaiba. He wanted-

"Hey, you okay?," the blonde's voice cut through his mental ranting. "You look shaken."

He startled at that. Shaken, him? Maybe. But he found the word was not enough.

"I am fine, do not worry about me. Thank you for telling me."

"No prob."

After a moment of silence between the two, IKaiba eventually added, "I am not against your friendship. Would you help me figure it out, Agent J?"

And when Jonouchi's smile returned, more genuine, he knew he had made the right decision, and the strange mix he had labeled as 'happiness' bubbled again in his nonexistent chest.


	9. Chapter 8

Happiness was a chemical reaction. Hormones produced by the brain mixed together at certain times. Theoretically, it was impossible for IKaiba to feel such a thing. But he did. How, was a question he had yet to find the answer to.

His quantum system was still a mystery to the AI. In some way, it was his creator, his home, and his playground. It gave him power, omnipotence and omniscience. They were one entity, and they were unique.

However, IKaiba knew he was not the only unique being on Earth. Jonouchi was, too, for once. The blonde occupied his thoughts in the form of a huge, fascinating question mark.

Jonouchi was not very bright in terms of academic knowledge, but he had an amazing instinct. He was sensitive to people around him, and very compassionate.

Jonouchi came from a poor social background, and yet, it seemed he had friends worth more than everything that Seto Kaiba's bank account could keep.

Jonouchi was said to be a mere street dog, a good-for-nothing by his former teachers and his new boss, but for the AI, he was better than them in the way he treated people. In the way he treated him.

At first, the artificial being could not fathom why he always thought about the yankee. Sure enough, he had proved to be exceptional in his own way, but there was also Isono, and Mokuba, and maybe others as exceptional as he. It did not explain why IKaiba felt like he wished to spend more time with him, or why he spied on Seto Kaiba so often to make sure nothing fishy could happen to him. It was bordering on ridiculous.

The AI had browsed numerous websites and searched countless archives for an answer. The only things he could read of, were theories about obsessive behaviors, isolation and craving for human contact, and love at first sight. All three were, obviously, very unsatisfying for IKaiba.

He was created after Seto Kaiba's personality, and the towering CEO was the definition of obsessive behavior. Look at his mad attitude towards his flimsy Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards. If he could have sex with them, no doubt that dragon porn would have been publicly declared as a legal and legitimate kind of relationship by now. IKaiba was not his human counterpart, but he might, to his dismay, have taken some of his traits. However, he did not feel like he could kill someone on sight for hitting on Jonouchi. For now. And he did not like the dragon, even remotely. Obsessing over such a thing was stupid. Completely stupid. And childish.

Craving for human contact was highly laughable. As an AI, he could not _touch_ anything. His very essence was what isolated him from humans. He doubted he could crave for something he did not know at all, unless it included a certain someone's contact. Only then, he would feel mildly concerned.

Love at first sight was impossible to verify. He knew even less about love than he did about friendship, and he had yet to experience friendship with Jonouchi. Besides, the articles he found on the subject were mainly from dubious sources; chick magazines or toilet-time trash could not be labeled as trustworthy. Yet, the symptoms listed concurred quite strangely with IKaiba's. The need to be with the chosen person, the anguish of not knowing what was happening to them, the immediate interest in them from the beginning, etc, he felt them all. Even the jealousy when Jonouchi spoke of someone else in his presence. This was worrying.

His introspection got interrupted by something else. Part of him was browsing absently through KaibaCorp's blue prints and came across a secret project of _solid vision_. Involving waves at a certain frequency, it intended to offer duelists a new experience, by giving them the chance to touch their holographic duel monsters. The first prototype of the associated _duel disk_ was being tested this week and showed encouraging results. Monsters could be felt, and the immense database of the company contained info on every living duelist, thus having some specific monsters reacting to their masters in a positive way, or to enemies with intimidating behaviors.

One of the report showed that a prototype had been sent to one Jonouchi Katsuya, and the shipment slip had been signed by Kaiba Seto. The package was marked as shipped on the previous day, and coincidentally, the delivery man had just rung with something for the blonde. This gave IKaiba an idea, and he intended to test it later.

Another notification popped up in his mind, and he frowned when he connected to the camera feed. Seto Kaiba was approaching Jonouchi's bedroom door, just as he was forbidden to go near it. His own room being in the other aisle, it was suspicious.

The AI decided to observe. Just in case, he checked if he could make a fake call on the CEO's phone to drive him away if need be. One was never to careful.

He continued browsing websites. One in particular, about psychology and cerebral experiments, piqued his interest.

 

¤~~~~~¤

 

Seto was about to knock, but he still debated whether it was a good idea or not.

True, he could barge in without asking for permission. It was his mansion, his property, he _owned_ the place, so he could easily act accordingly. But he did not want to risk upsetting Mokuba more than he already was. And even if his little brother was at KaibaCorp, supervising the engineers' work for a good three more hours, it did not mean he would not hear of Seto disrespecting his wish to stay away from the room. That would ask for consequences, the kind that the CEO did not want to experience.

So here he was, standing in front of the mutt's room in his own corridor, in his own house, unable to enter like he should be able to. Ridiculous. And very, very disagreeable.

He still had to knock, though. He wanted to play nice. He already hated the idea, but it was his new plan and he could not give up now.

His knuckles hit the wooden door briskly, and he waited. Curiously, when straining his hearing to get what was happening on the other side, he had the impression that someone was talking to someone else. That was impossible, was it not? Jonouchi was alone in his room. His friends would have been announced if they were to visit, and Isono was busy watching Mokuba. The only viable option, was that the blonde was talking to someone on the phone. Or to himself.

He knocked more forcefully this time, growing irritated that no one had opened instantly the first time. The mutt was convalescent, but that was not the point. He had only had a case of dehydration and hunger, not taken a bullet, for God's sake! He should not take that long.

“Enter!,” sounded from the other side.

Seto frowned. No, he had decided to have the blonde open the door for him, and he would knock until he got satisfied. If his employee could take his merry time to talk on the phone instead of answering the door, he could move his ass to open said door. Playing nice did not mean playing dumb.

Shuffling indicated that the blonde – finally! – got it and came to open the door. The handle went down, and the honey-brown eyes of the mutt peered at him. They widened slightly in surprise.

“Uh. Director Kaiba?,” he asked, dumbfounded, hurriedly coming out into the corridor and closing the door behind him.

Seto did his best to tamper the force of his glare. He had to _play nice_. Still, he zeroed his employee with a chilling gaze. The dumb rookie had to understand just how displeased he was with him.

“I see you're better,” he said at last, just because he had to say something. The silence would unnerve the blonde unnecessarily.

“I.. am.” Jonouchi looked hesitant for an instant, then his features schooled and he went back to his irritating professional tone. “Thank you for your concern, sir. I hope to go back to work soon, if you allow me.”

So the mutt was insecure about his position. He might fear he would be kicked out to the street again after he disappointed his master. Seto was tempted. Really, he was. This whole mess turned more to his disadvantage by the minute. Mokuba and Isono liked the damp rat way too much. However, he wanted to sack the rookie because of a serious professional mistake, and not just because he wanted to. There was more pleasure to get with the former.

“I expect you at seven sharp next Monday,” he ordered in his most neutral tone. “I'll accept no delay.”

Jonouchi let surprise show on his face, before he put on his mask again. Seto smirked inwardly. He could do this.

“I'll leave you to rest,” he finished quickly. “I'll come again to make sure you're not wasting my hospitality. After all, _I_ 'm paying for your food and lodging, Jonouchi. I'd like it to be useful to both of us. Also, I...”

The CEO got interrupted as he received a call from Mokuba. He answered briskly.

“What is it?”

“Big brother,” the voice of the younger Kaiba sounded from the other end, “I wanted to tell you the first avatars had been loaded and are fully working, if...”

“I'm coming right away,” he cut off, ending the call and striding away from the stunned blonde, his conversation with him already far, far away in his mind. He had more urgent matters to attend.

When the CEO disappeared from sight, Katsuya let out a breath. He did not know what surprised him most: that the drama king had come to see _him_ , that he had spoken civilly, or that he had called him _Jonouchi_ , and not mutt or Fido.

After a moment of thought, he decided that this was Kaiba for you, and went back into his room, where IKaiba waited for him.

He had received a special package from KaibaCorp. The cook had just brought it up to him. A present from Mokuba, most certainly. The shipment was signed by his boss, but no way would Kaiba send him something voluntarily. Otherwise, apocalypse was coming soon. In the box, he found a brand new _duel disk_ , along with a case in which he found his deck. Katsuya wondered if Isono had taken it when he had taken spare clothes at the blonde's apartment. In any case, he was glad to have his beloved cards with him. They gave him a sense of homely comfort, and that was just what he needed in this scary house.

He turned the first card and smiled warmly when his Red-Eyes appeared. The dragon looked like he was greeting him.

“Is that your favorite card?,” IKaiba asked.

It was a rhetorical question. He should already know the black dragon was Katsuya's best ally. Still, the blonde answered happily.

“Yeah, he's been my best buddy for years now. We faced many dangers together.”

“I did not know card games could be dangerous.”

The AI's tone was stern, but he was actually wondering. There were mysterious blank periods in some of KaibaCorp's tournaments, especially during that of Battle City, when there was close to no data about the way things had unrolled. Only the name of the winner, and a few fragments of duels here and there. No doubt that things had been erased voluntarily, with the subtlety of a madman butchering a body with a chainsaw. It was gross and poorly done.

Katsuya snorted.

“Neither did I, until I met the Pharaoh and the bearers of the Millenium Items. Seriously, after all we went through, I'm hardly surprised by anything for long. That may be why I accept you as you are so easily, come to think of it. I encountered strangest things than an artificial human being. And you're nicer that the monsters I came across, I assure you.”

He still shuddered at the memory of his first shadow duel, when the other Yuugi had used his and his friends' souls as duel monsters. He had been sent to the graveyard and hosted by the grim reaper of cards, and truth be told, never had he run so fast for his dear life. He had also explored Kaiba's sick virtual worlds, dueled against Yami Marik and his maniacal ideas of 'fun', and he had struggled in the Shadow Realm more than once, but this first dive into the Egyptian purgatory was the one that stuck the most. So, a somewhat friendly AI scored quite low in his conception of strange. In fact, he could hardly been categorized in there.

“The Pharaoh?” IKaiba was puzzled. “Are you referring to the King of Games? Is his name not Mutou Yuugi?”

“Well... It's kind of a complicated story.” Katsuya rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Would you believe it if I talked about magic?”

“No.”

The answer had been cutting and direct. The blonde did not expect less from the AI. He sighed and went on.

“I thought so. Nevertheless, you'd have to believe me, if you wanted to understand. I still think some of the things I experienced were dreams, or nightmares, but they really happened, and I'm witness of that. So, even if it sounds crazy, it's true. Mokuba, or Isono, could confirm some of those to you.”

“Hm.” IKaiba was skeptical. Magic sounded impossible, as science had never been able to prove it existence. So, Jonouchi talking about it as facts? Hardly believable. But he would give it a try. There _were_ huge gaps in the story of the great Battle City tournament, whereas Kaiba should have gushed about his event like any normal egomaniac would have in his place. The artificial being snorted mentally at the oxymoron he just invented. Normal egomaniac...

“Alright. Go on,” he motioned to Jonouchi that he was willing to listen to his story.

The blonde nodded with a sheepish smile tugging at his lips.

“Right. So, there exist seven magical items called the Millenium Items, and one in particular, Yuugi's Puzzle, contained the soul of an ancient Egyptian Pharaoh. Yami had sealed himself with a dangerous power of darkness in the Item, and slept for millennia until Yuugi built the Puzzle and awoke. You follow me?”

“For the moment, yes,” IKaiba replied evenly, his nose scrunched up in suspicion.

“Okay. The Pharaoh had no memory of his past, but he seemed to draw to him all sorts of shit. Bullies were suddenly found drooling and hallucinating, thugs went nuts, and maniacs like Pegasus tried to steal his Puzzle or kill him. Kaiba of the latter, before Yami beat him in a duel so harshly that he went into depression or something, for some months. Me and my friends, we went through many adventures with him, a lot of them related to duel monsters and the power held in the cards.”

“Right. So after the Egyptian spirit nonsense, I get the hidden power of a card game. Right. Pardon me not to believe a word you say for now.”

“Wait until I talk about evil spirits, then. You see, _Duel Monsters_ is inspired by a real, ancient Egyptian game with actual monsters. I don't know the details, but it was pretty big at the time, and it was possible thanks to the power of the Millenium Items. That's why _Duel Monsters_ is dangerous when misused.”

“If you say so...”

“I do and I'll tell you why. Things around Yami escalated until this huge Battle City tournament, in which Yuugi and I were participating, with Mai, Kaiba, a creepy dude who named himself Marik Ishtar but in fact was his adopted brother or something like that, Marik himself under another identity, his sister Ishizu Ishtar, and Bakura. There had never been so many Millenium Items in one place, and the Miss Ishtar's necklace had prophesied there was to be a turn of events regarding the Pharaoh, involving the three god cards.”

“Wonderful.”

Katsuya ignored the sarcasm.

“You asked for it. Don't complain now. Short story short, it went downright crazy when not-Marik tried to invoke a fake god card against me, and we were hit by the real god's wrath. Then, without not-Marik to keep the darkness at bay, the real Marik turned into a bat-shit crazy shadow of a man with a pointy golden weapon. He banished Mai and me to the Shadow Realm and wanted to kill Yuugi and the spirit he hosted. He Pharaoh beat him in a duel, and Kaiba went all drama king, and the Pharaoh had the three cards and used them thanks to a magic spell engraved into Marik's back.”

“I won't even comment on that one.”

“Thanks, because I'm not finished.”

“...I regret ever asking.”

“In the end, our souls went into ancient Egypt, where we found the Pharaoh's true name, so that he could invoke the ultimate god of Light and vanquish Zorc Necrophade, the divinity of darkness that had taken the form of Bakura's dark half, or eaten him, I'm not sure at this point. Anyway, the Pharaoh won, woopie, then Yuugi beat him in a last ceremonial duel, and he could go back to the afterlife and live happily ever after.”

“You do realize I am about to call a psychiatrist at this point, because I am seriously fearing for your mental health. Swear to me you did not consume illicit substances?”

“I told you it was a complicated story!,” Katsuya defended.

“Yes, complicated like 'Yuugi is a strange kid with hallucinating fits', not complicated like 'I deceive myself with fantasies and try to convince the world they are true'.”

“Like I said, you can ask Mokuba, or even Isono. They were there for the Battle City part.”

IKaiba's eyes glazed over again, and the blonde wondered if it was the sign the AI was doing something else in the giant cloud of synapses that was his domain. His theory got confirmed when, some seconds later, the brunet blinked and scoffed.

“Isono confirms your story, as ridiculous as it is. I also checked my database, and found evidence of the misdeeds of one Ishtar Marik, deeply buried into Kaiba's personal computer. So, I will try to believe some of this is true.”

Katsuya sighed in relief.

“Phew, I'm glad you... wait, did you say you entered Kaiba's laptop?”

“I did.”

“You can do that?”

“J.” The AI called him J now, in reference to the 'Agent J' he had agreed to use. “I can hack into the American Pentagon's files in five minutes flat, as well as in the CIA's and the KGB's. Hacking into Kaiba Seto's computer took barely longer, and only because he coded his firewall in Coptic. I needed to find reliable data to translate, but then it was child's play.”

“No, I mean, of course you can easily do that. But aren't you forbidden from doing that?”

The brunet huffed through his nose.

“I cannot harm him, that is all. And hacking into his computer, when all I do is looking, cannot be considered harming in any way. By the way, I guess you do not know of the file he keeps on you?”

Katsuya's eyes widened. Kaiba had a file on him? Why? He hoped it was not to keep a record of all the times he ridiculed himself in front of the CEO, or...

“Why the face?,” IKaiba smirked, “I assure you there is nothing X-rated. Is that how you say it? Anyway, he only stores basic information and personal comments, as well as voice recordings and duel logs. He is a very boring man, predictable to a point it is not even funny to think about harming him. I have better things to do.”

“Voice recordings? What for, you think?”

It was a little unnerving, knowing that your boss, the man who could not bear you for more than a few minutes without wanting to make your life hell, had your voice recorded on his personal computer. The AI sensed his discomfort and shrugged.

“It is related to his new project. I cannot tell you what it is, for it would be harming his interests, but I can say it is related to the package you received, like everything he does, in fact. I hope he washes his hands after playing with his deck, or they sure would be very sticky for the next person who would have to shake them.”

His caustic innuendo made Katsuya splutter and burst out laughing. Really, only IKaiba could make a sex joke on Kaiba, and neither of them did know what sex was! It was too much. He was crying by the time he managed to stop.

IKaiba watched his human's hilarity with a mix of confusion and contentment. He was satisfied to see him laugh at something he said, even more so when he was criticizing his original version, but he did not really understand why it was so funny to him. Was it that he succeeded in joking about Kaiba's sexual life – or lack thereof –? It looked like it.

“So,” the blonde said breathlessly when he was calm again, “so he's working on a new _duel disk_ , and he needs my voice recordings. Okay, we'll see then. Promise me you'll hunt his ass down is he does something unacceptable with them?”

He did not know if the AI could do that, as apparently, Katsuya's voice was included into Kaiba's interests... and _that_ just sounded very, very wrong. He should stop thinking altogether. In any case, it could not hurt asking. Better to have someone have his back out there.

The brunet in front of him considered his question and promptly nodded.

“Of course. Harming is not the only way I can make someone pay. I have as many options as there are water drops in the ocean.”

His smirk turned predatory, and even if he was glad to know he had a really good ally to work with, Katsuya was also very relieved to have him as an ally, and not as an enemy. If the AI felt like a human being to him, he still was a terrifying, limitless program.

Now that this was settled, Katsuya's eyes went back to contemplating the _duel disk_ and deck on his lap. Was it the new version Kaiba was working on? What could be different from the previous one? He picked it and examined it thoroughly. It looked more modern in shape, but other than that, there was no visible difference. It should be inside, then. The change was to be found in the components and functions.

The blonde put it on his arm, the familiar weight bringing him an immense sense of comfort and nostalgia. How long had it been since he last bore one in a duel! He inserted his deck into the slot, and his life points counter blipped into life. 4000. He drew four cards and his head filled with the possible strategies at his disposal. A chuckled drew his attention to IKaiba, who was observing him very intently, a small, less dangerous smile on his holographic lips. He appeared... young and carefree, for the first time since Katsuya had known him.

“You missed it,” the AI commented. There was no reproach in his voice. He was just stating a fact, like he understood and was glad for him. The blonde nodded.

“Yeah. I did.”

The brunet hummed and distanced himself, his eyes glazing over again. Instantly, a holographic _duel disk_ appeared in front of his arm with a deck in the slot, and a screen with his life points counter flashed above his head.

“Well,” he said cockily, “I may not know a lot about dueling, but I bet I can learn and beat you on my first duel. Do you want to try defeat from my hand?”

Right then, with his shining blue eyes and confident smirk, IKaiba looked very much like Kaiba. And yet, at the same time, his features looked more... playful. Katsuya gaped at him. Soon, his astonishment gave way to a beaming, radiant smile, and the rookie bounced on the mattress in exhilaration.

“Come at me, K, I'll take you on!”

IKaiba chuckled and readied himself. In the corner of his mind, he absently noticed that Kaiba Seto had logged in the _duel links_ virtual world, testing a weak holographic version of 'Yami', the seemingly deceased modern persona of the Pharaoh. He brushed the information aside. Let him see who could have the most fun between them both.

 


	10. Chapter 9

The virtual world of the _Duel Links_ system was still in construction, but the main features were already in place. The shop, curiously inspired from the Kame Game Shop in Domino, the arena, the duel school, the card studio, and the gate stood proudly among insignificant background buildings. KaibaCorp's engineers had worked on the architectural designs and main themes for weeks, and this was the primary result.

In the large _Neurons System_ room _,_ Seto strode to the connecting pod that would project his mind into the virtual universe. At first, it had been designed as a mind controlling device Gozaburo Kaiba had ordered for his worrying adoptive son, just in case he needed to turn Seto into a glorified puppet. Its original design had been changed and reprogrammed to serve the company's new goals in the entertainment industry, and Seto projected to expand it worldwide. If proved totally safe and with functioning, autonomous power supplies, it could be commercialized on a large scale one day, to arcades, for example. But presently, it was still a prototype, a rough, imperfect, ugly version of the final product. It could take years to be complete. Only the CEO used this as of day, for it was more dangerous than anything. And it would serve him to test the virtual world from the inside.

The brunet lay down in the pod and put on the _Neurons_ helmet. The digital interface came to life on the surface of the visor, reading his irises and welcoming him into the core system of KaibaCorp's developing department. The pod hummed and whirred, and something pricked at the back of his neck, piercing through the tough skin to reach a nerve. Soon, the uneasy feeling that always accompanied the connection between his nervous system and the computer assaulted him a few seconds, before it faded. Then, new screens opened before his eyes, and the feeling of falling invaded his senses, making his eyes close on instinct. His consciousness evaded him and flew away into the virtual world.

A few seconds later, Seto opened his eyes to the world of _Duel Links_. He was alone in the streets, as the generic NPCs had not been loaded yet, but it did not matter. He knew where to find the other. He advanced towards the Game Shop, and surely enough, a figure appeared as he turned the corner, standing in front of the closed double doors. Spiky tri-coloured hair were ruffled by an invisible breeze, and a soft clicking sound came from the chain around the person's neck. They had their back to the brunet, and they turned to look at him when his footsteps were too close to ignore.

The vibrantly purple eyes of Yami caught Seto's gaze in a relaxed and challenging manner, as if he was waiting for him and him alone. The duelist stood proudly and turned completely towards the CEO, a winning smirk playing on his lips.

“Kaiba,” Yami – Atem – greeted.

His voice was identical to the actual one's. Seto had dug his entire database to snatch every and any piece of the King of Games' voice, to make sure that the synthesized version was perfect. He had hawked on his employees as they coded the duelist, leaving no space to mistake. The result was breathtaking. Upon hearing him, Seto felt a chill run through him and sparking his fighting spirit. His own smirk mirrored the one of his adversary.

“Atem,” he replied. He settled on calling him by his Egyptian name, for even if the virtual avatar had Yugi's paler complexion and modern clothes, it was indeed the Pharaoh. “I challenge you to a duel!”

The King of Games hummed, amused. He took his dueling stance.

“Alright, I accept.”

* * *

 

_An hour later_

 

The connecting pod opened with a wheezing sound, and Seto used all his willpower not to tear himself from the apparatus. If he forced the tiny cable off his neck, he could damage his nerves. But he was close to not giving a damn anymore. He was pissed off to the highest level, and the poor soul who would first come to talk to him would be fired on the spot for just being here at the wrong time.

Sometime during his test dive into _Duel Links_ , the CEO had expected to face a challenging opponent, for once. He had _expressly_ demanded that Yami was loaded with at least a level 40 deck, which meant he could pull a few nasty combos at him, and then gain in power. Eventually, he should have thrown a couple of interesting rounds, before he would be delightfully defeated.

But what did Seto actually get? A succession of weak monsters in attack mode, mere canon fodder he could get rid of with blind eyes and a debilitating disease on last stage. Stubborn as he was, he had asked for three rematches, before his anger got the better of him. The AI piloting the duels was hopeless, and when he had a good look at the coding from the inside, he had seen nothing out of order. That meant someone had fucked it up on a microscopic scale, but his wrath would reach ginormous proportions. Spoiling his sport was a crime no one could get away from without at least a life ruined and a plaguing sense of misery. Whoever fucked up was about to pay tenfold.

Unfortunately for him, it was Mokuba who first came to him, his face scrunched up in worry. Seto's fury abated just in time not to chew his brother's head off and yell obscenities when the unavoidable question came.

“Are you alright, big brother? We got concerned with an unusual peak of activity in the _Duel Links_ system, and we...”

“That was only me trying to make this fucking AI do something worth my time,” he snapped. “Tell the engineers I'll personally hunt the dimwit who coded that down, and sack them with no hope of getting another job. Ever. If they're lucky enough to survive after I'm done with them.”

The younger Kaiba went back a few steps, the anger radiating from his big brother being enough to scare him away. With a last frustrated huff, Seto strode to the elevator connecting the labs to his office, and locked himself up in there. He was surrounded by morons.

* * *

_Meanwhile, in the virtual world_

 

Once Kaiba was gone, virtual Yami let out a satisfied chuckle and disappeared. In his place, IKaiba stood proudly, his mischief managed and efficient.

When the CEO challenged this avatar, the AI knew he could get back at him for his treating Jonouchi like nothing. He could not harm the man, but this was no harming per se. He only fiddled with the lesser AI controlling Yami's dueling strategies and deck, making the level 10 deck coded for beginners of the game, the new level 40 deck Kaiba would face. After that, he just watched things unfold on their own. And when the CEO looked into the coding, IKaiba simply rearranged everything back as it was originally. The face he got for this would make him laugh for decades.

The _Neurons System_ really was a blessing. Being connected to Kaiba's brain, it gave IKaiba access to the man's emotions as if they were his own, and he could, for the first time, have a clear idea of the feelings labeled as 'trepidation', 'excitement', 'hope', but also 'frustration', 'disappointment' and 'longing'. He stored them preciously in a privileged part of his own brain, replaying them again and again to ensure he could feel them as his own. He felt like an addict with a new drug. The human mind truly was an exhilarating mystery.

In the meantime, he enjoyed quite a few entertaining matches against Jonouchi, in his room in the Kaiba Mansion. Ubiquity surely had its perks. With the blonde, the AI could test his own strategies and combos, winning a few times, losing a few others, but always having what he guessed was fun, for 'fun' had not been what Kaiba had felt when dueling virtual Yami. The artificial being was pleased to win, but he did not mind losing. The huge smile his human had when he defeated him, made everything, even bitter defeat, worth it. The two could have dueled for hours, had Jonouchi not expressed his urgent need to eat.

As he watched the blonde try to get out of the room alone for the first time, taking cautious steps and making sure no brunet was there to stalk him down the corridor, IKaiba felt another twinge of something undefinable in his core. It was strange, to be so satisfied with pulling a prank on someone for the sake of someone else. Clearly, he would gladly mess with Kaiba again, if it was payback in favor of the rookie, even if he did not get the benefit of collecting the man's emotions. His dedication, which he found he could not help, puzzled him, and his research was fruitless.

The cameras in the hall showed a careful Jonouchi looking for clues as to where he could be, opening random doors. Eventually, he found the huge kitchen and the cook. Good. Once he got sustenance, he would be back to IKaiba. The AI waited impatiently for his human to return, occupying himself with research.

Another problem for him, as an AI, was his lack of human senses, as he had already stated it to the blonde. This was his main preoccupation, for it impended his capacity to get tangible data on things such as gastronomy, sports, and exterior gestures to show emotions. Jonouchi could not give him five, or pat him on his back, or shake his hand, and IKaiba could not stroke the blonde's mane of hair, or kiss him, or taste his body. And crazy as it seemed, he wanted to. His human's athletic figure looked firm and soft at the same time, which sounded like an oxymoron the AI had to test out.

As regards emotions... His contact with Kaiba's brain was the first real occurrence during which he had solid knowledge to compare with what his database contained. It did not help him figure out what love was in the slightest, but at least it was a first step towards a means to know. A message popped up at the edge of his mind and drew him out of his thoughts. It was a text from Isono.

**Are you responsible?**

His creator did not specify, but the AI knew what he was referring to. Switching to one of the cameras installed in Seto Kaiba's office at KaibaCorp, IKaiba noticed that the brunet was brooding and typing with too much force on his computer. Isono was standing behind him, stiff as a board, phone in hand. His expression, hidden as it were, still looked sour. He was upset and/or angry at him, then.

Another text came.

**Why did you do it? He's threatening to fire an innocent!**

Okay, definitely angry. IKaiba composed a quick answer, checking at the same time what Jonouchi was doing. The blonde was presently devouring a plate of curry rice and would not be back before long. Convenient.

**It was a harmless prank** , he wrote back,  **as a means to avenge Jonouchi.**

He did not add that he had taken the liberty to look into the CEO's brain, particularly the part dedicated to emotions, and resisted the growing urge to comment that the man lacked brain space when it came to feelings. Isono looked in no mood for private jokes.

The reply was dry.

**If this is your idea of fun, I guess we have things to discuss.**

IKaiba mentally rolled his eyes.

**If I had a father, based on what I read, you would sound like him.**

This seemed to take the elder male off-guard, for the camera feed showed that he moved slightly and rubbed his brow.

**Technically, I _am._**

Ah. True enough. Isono was his creator, so he could be assimilated to a father, in a way. And he did sound like one, at the moment.

The AI decided to give in temporarily. He did not want the other to be furious with him. After all, he _did_ owe him his very existence, and from that, the chance to know Jonouchi.

**I understand. Please forgive me. I am trying to figure out if I like Jonouchi or not, and I guess I got carried away.**

Isono did start, this time. Even Kaiba sensed him, having him turn around in his chair.

“Problem, Isono?,” the CEO abruptly asked.

“No, sir.”

When his boss went back back to his computer, his face sourer and angrier than before, the bodyguard resumed his text conversation.

**We really need to discuss things together.**

**Yes, father.**

**Take care of Katsuya until then, please. I need to go.**

**Of course.**

IKaiba disconnected from the camera and turned his attention back on the blonde eating away everything the cook put in front of him. Now that he was better, his appetite had come back full force, as if his stomach wanted to make up for the missed meal he had to watch go cold in front of him. The AI was satisfied to see this. He had learned that a satiated Jonouchi was happiest, and that was good. He also noticed that even if the rookie could swallow food in gargantuan quantities, his stomach remained quite flat and toned. The artificial being wished he could touch it to feel it for himself.

The cameras in the kitchen caught the voice of Jonouchi, and the AI listened intently.

“Woah, Matsu, you're gonna make me burst! Everything you make is so good!”

Yes, food was essential in Jonouchi's life. IKaiba chuckled inwardly and kept the small track recorded in his database. He had many samples of the kind, a lot of them revolving around the topic of food. Nevertheless, he felt like he never had enough of the blonde. It was so frustrating not to get more of him, and be reduced to having scraps gathered now and then... Whereas the rookie's boss, even if he did not know his chance, could be close to him anytime, should he wish to. The fact that he was not was a blessing in itself, all things considered. IKaiba would have had to find a way around his primary ban and kill Kaiba, which was too troublesome.

In fact, the AI realized he envied Seto Kaiba, as much as he resented him. The human had proved he was capable of feeling emotions, even if this ability seemed to pain him immensely. But still, IKaiba would have done everything to be in his place, with the blonde, talking and interacting as equals. Feeling and touching naturally. Everything his intangibility forbid him from doing.

Unless... Unless maybe, the aforementioned blessing was not one, and the current set of things needed to be altered.

This called for a gigantic amount of data about the CEO, but perhaps Isono would be so kind as to provide him with it without much persuasion. Or Mokuba. Or even Jonouchi, if IKaiba calculated his moves very well. Either way, he would have to plan this minutely, but in case of success... Well, he could make everyone happy, including the obnoxious brunet that was at present very close to throwing a huge tantrum, because his crappy virtual avatar of a not-lover did not reach his expectations.

The camera feed of the Mansion provided him with the vital information that Jonouchi was coming back to his room, a happy spring in his steps, and IKaiba decided to rearrange his tasks in order to prioritize the blonde. Any amount of time spent with him, was a moment that was only his. For the rest, he would see soon enough.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a little shorter, because I didn't want to throw too much info at once. The plot is thickening and getting more mature, with IKaiba getting more powerful and a shade darker.
> 
> The rating became M for reasons you'll find obvious very soon.
> 
> All in all, I'm very happy that Isono and IKaiba received so good reactions and support from readers, and I can't thank you enough :3
> 
> Enjoy!


	11. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!
> 
> In this chapter, there will be mentions of prostitution, escorts, and the sex industry as a whole. My characters give their opinions about this topic, but please keep in mind that this is a work of fiction, and my characters' opinions are not to be interpreted as necessarily mine or as a lesson on morals.
> 
> I hope I was not too clumsy, my aim is not to stigmatize or point at things. I don't want to open a debate either.
> 
> Don't hesitate to tell me if I'm being hurtful in the way I write about things, though.
> 
> Enjoy!

At last, Katsuya could work again. It was about time. After a few days of being locked up in the shiny golden cage that was the Kaiba Mansion, he was certain he would become mad just looking at the goddamn bed and its silky sheets. The house staff was all polite and lovely, Mokuba and Isono came as often as they could, IKaiba kept him company at all times, Kaiba was being civil – when was the meteor rain scheduled for again? –, but the blonde still waited impatiently for his freedom at work. Yes, he really thought working in Kaiba's tower was better than being lodged and fed by Kaiba's staff. At least, when he was at KaibaCorp, the rookie was not afraid to have a nightly visit of a creepy smiling Kaiba. The last nightmare he had of this nearly gave him a heart attack.

When he returned, he got bound to office work for a while, as the new _Duel Disk_ was coming out in a few weeks and they needed to complete the launching announcement and public appearances of Kaiba. That meant Katsuya had to prepare his employer's trips from one place to another, check the places where he would be, and tell the organizers he would be there instead of Isono this time. It was his first real task as the CEO's shadow, in public, and he felt both giddy and excited to prove himself, although he was mildly worried when his mentor informed him that it was Kaiba himself who had requested the rookie came with him as his bodyguard. He would have to be extra careful.

He got an office on the same floor as Isono, just under the CEO's. The working space, almost half the size of his apartment, was bare except from a brand new computer on a shiny glass desk and a big, comfy chair. Still, it was more than he had ever had, and he had been said he could decorate the room as he wished. No restriction. The blonde could not wait to put on a picture of his best dragon pal, just to taunt his boss with it if the man ever came in one day. That, and a giant poster of _Men in Black_ , a private joke meant only for him, IKaiba and Isono. Oh, yes, this was his territory, not Kaiba's, and he would show it.

Actually, he had seldom seen his employer, which was a relief, but when he did, Kaiba was extremely neutral with him. Which really meant a lot. No insult, no undermining word, if not for the occasional 'mutt' slipping out of the brunet's mouth once in a while, but with an almost playful tone Katsuya had never heard before. He was crept out and did his best not to let it show. No doubt the man was coming back at him for being all polished and obedient with him, thus resisting him in a way he had never before.

Of course, IKaiba was assisting him. Being the most powerful AI in Japan, and probably in the whole world, he could make background checks faster than his human, although Katsuya did them himself too, so as not to rely entirely on his friend. Once this was done, the pair proceeded with checking Kaiba's schedule and bookings, to make sure everything would go smoothly the whole week. There was no holographic projector, so they had to communicate through the blonde's computer – IKaiba wrote text messages on an instant messaging app he had coded solely for them, and Katsuya answered out loud, the microphone in the device relaying what he said to the AI –.

The first day after the blonde's return went by quickly. He only had time to say hi to Satsuki, who nearly glomped him in relief. They promised to have a coffee together sometime after the rush they were going through. He saw Isono, too, before the elder bodyguard went to retrieve Mokuba from school. His mentor smiled at him and invited him to lunch the following day, at their usual place. And not only them, but a few employees he had encountered here and there smiled at him as he passed and greeted them, before they resumed their tasks. Those small gestures made him feel welcome in this company he thought to be a devil's lore, and as crazy as it sounded given the small amount of time he had spent in here, the rookie found he was happy to be back. Maybe he would like this job more than he thought, and not only for the money he earned from it.

* * *

Or maybe not.

As a top-notch bodyguard, his roles were as numerous as the shares his boss possessed, which was a lot, really. Some of his duties were straightforward, like protecting his employer – bodyguard, guard the body, duh –, but others were stranger and specific to his position as Kaiba's shadow. One of them included his capacity to provide the CEO with everything he could need, from food to clothes, including... company. Like, decorative company for galas, or private company for the happiness of his nights. To put it simply and elegantly.

Isono had assured him Kaiba had never asked anything of the sort, but one was never too careful. So, as a dedicated employee, Katsuya had decided he would get some work done on this aspect, as it could not be proper to hesitate on a choice of escort if one day his boss requested one for real. As they were about to get through a week of strenuous public appearances and events, maybe Kaiba would feel... needs to relax. This involved studious preparations, both in terms of seriousness and safety. The rookie had to filter escort agencies to select the most interesting candidates, and the most capable ladies they had to offer. Though the very thought of 'offering' women was enough to make the blonde want to vomit in his mouth.

On a radiant Saturday morning, when the CEO was busy working on Ra knew what, Jonouchi sat at his desk – _his_ desk –, and began browsing the internet, in search for agencies he could add into his phantom file. IKaiba helped him, though his inputs consisted more of snarky comments on the morals of such businesses. The pair of agents agreed on their incomprehension.

**They sell women, how is it different from prostitution.**

"Well, they only sell their time, not their bodies," the blonde sarcastically added, "what do you expect."

Katsuya did not have to care if he appeared crazy. He was alone. It was _his_ office. However, he would have appreciated talking to his friend directly, rather than via a microphone. Oh, well, he was lucky he had his own working space, without his boss leering at him from the corner of his vision, and so he could speak as loudly as he liked.

**There is little difference. When you buy someone's time in that way, regardless of how you use it, you also buy their willingness and censor their freedom of thought. So, you buy a complete being, in mind and body, for a certain amount of time, you do not buy time alone. No matter how you try to make it sound better, this** ** is ** **a form of prostitution.**

"Y'know, if I follow your train of thoughts, I'd be whoring myself to Kaiba, too."

The thought had him smile and make a face at the same time. He wondered if the camera of his computer caught his expression and relayed it to his partner.

**In a way, yes, as much as I am pained to admit it. He asks a lot of you, things you should not normally abide to. This includes your looking into glorified brothels' websites.**

At least his opinion was crystal clear. Katsuya agreed, but truth be told, he preferred doing this now and be done with it for good, rather than push it away and have it bite his ass later. He just hoped he would never have to use an escort's services. Even if some of the agencies – those he selected – looked classy and respectful of the women they advertised, offering company for business and nothing else. Even if some women could have chosen this job – one could be an idealist –. It still looked wrong in his eyes.

The rookie knew he would have no say in the matter, if his boss came to decide he would need such services. If that happened, Katsuya would obey and try to limit the damage. It was dreadful, but it was legal, and he had seen worse. When he was a _yankee,_ he had seen how it was in the poorer parts of town. He had seen prostitutes do what they had without so much as a flimsy, rusted piece of sheet metal in a back alley to protect them from the weather as they 'worked'. Or women beaten black and blue and chased down by their pimps, and still working even if they had something broken and untreated. He had witnessed what humans could do to one another for money, fame, or power, and as he watched the high definition pictures of half-naked, curvy female bodies with an uninterested eye, he concluded that this was, on an unfair scale where living beings were objects, nearing acceptable. At least, the women advertised here looked healthy.

It did not mean he liked this. Not at all. He did not like puppies being sold in shops, so humans...

He would definitely not use their services, unless he had no other option. He doubted Kaiba would like them, anyway. If he liked anyone at all besides his brother. And Katsuya could not – would not – look for a girl resembling Mokuba Kaiba. No way in hell. Kissing Yami Marik's ass in Lava Golem's cage was better than this. Kaiba would have his head just for having these thoughts right now.

**You look thoughtful. Is something on your mind?**

The question showed a worried undertone, and Katsuya snapped back to reality. He realized he had scrolled to the bottom of the page and had been staring at the photo of a bleached blonde girl in her twenties, described to 'like big cocks which could make her sing for her manly rooster', for a good minute of complete silence, before his virtual partner had intervened. His face heated up. He must have looked like a complete perv. He hastily closed the page.

"Sorry, I spaced out. I'm not really comfortable with that stuff. Guess there's no going around it, though."

**I thought as much. I filtered out the other websites that blatantly offered 'pleasurable extras'. Some of the few I let through I am uncertain about, so I trust your human experience on the matter. A couple of them are offering male escorts, and I even found an agency specialized in transgender escorts, without sexual intercourse.**

"Oh, er, um... Yeah."

Katsuya was unsure about the last one. Why specialize in that? Who obsessed on trans people so much, that an entire agency was dedicated to advertising them? Why even advertise _people_ on an effing website? Some sites displayed them like an Amazon platform for perverts. Where was the bin to vomit into? They were talking about human beings!

_And there's even a cart. Like in a supermarket. Dude, who's twisted enough ta go as far as puttin' a being in a virtual cart an' book them online for further pleasure? Ugh. Don't answer, brain, ta much._

Back to topic. He really did not want to know anything about his employer's tastes in people, let alone ask him if he preferred a trans or not. Nope, never. Yet, the blonde had to retain all viable possibilities, until the CEO decided something concrete. He had to gather his courage.

"I'll check them and select those I find most suitable. Thanks."

**You are welcome, I suppose? Do you need anything else?**

"Nope, although you could give me some support when I... oh God no."

**What?**

The message went unseen, as Katsuya's gaze remained transfixed in horror at what he saw. On one of the websites selected by IKaiba, in the 'males' section, a plethora of pictures welcomed him, masculinity displayed in full HD, without a single pixel of covering on the luscious bodies posing in various situations: on velvety bed sheets, in the woods, next to a pool... It was a cock festival in R18 FantasiaLand.

_Ra, save me. A bottle of bleach won't be enough for this._

Numbed, the blonde scrolled down and discovered that the agency advertised a lot of male escorts, with all shades of skin color, and of many different nationalities. They were even offering 'cosplay fantasies', including...

Oh. Right this instant, he was glad he had not anything potentially hot or dangerous in his hand, otherwise his jump might have been lethal to his person. Upon 'looking' – for he was not, for the love of him, _watching_ those nudes willingly –, in search for anything that could be retained as passable for his boss, he had come face to face with a copy of the very CEO. The resemblance was not perfect, but close enough for Katsuya to reel back in his chair, spluttering.

The escort was a brunet in his twenties, with strikingly similar blue eyes. He had naturally lightly tan skin, a carefully built six-pack and, unlike the others, he was covered from the mid-section. Probably to tease potential clients, if not to keep the illusion that he was as prudish as the actual man. Upon closer inspection, the blonde noticed the male's gaze looked meeker, lacking the hard glint Kaiba always bore, and his features were somewhat softer. All in all, the copy looked... less threatening, more accessible, and it felt strange to Katsuya. He was so used to working with the CEO, and IKaiba, who was a real doppelganger of the former in appearance, that he could immediately point out the differences. But he had to admit that for the common man, the escort could have passed for Kaiba.

"Have you ever dreamed of spending a romantic evening with the ice king of Domino?," the ad asked. "Then you've come to the right place! Our most wanted escort Sen would be delighted to answer the name of the sexiest bachelor, and believe us, you'll soon fall for him as if he were the real stuff! Your satisfaction will be guaranteed, and his large set of skills will allow him to play any role you want. A tender Director? 'Of course, darling, anything for you!' A bossy countenance? 'Sure, scum, kneel to me if you so desire.' A passionate, lonely billionaire hidden behind the cold facade? 'Never thought you would see it... would you stay by my side?' The only limit is that of your imagination! Book him now, before he's gone for good!"

This definitely made him sick. After the obsession over people for sale, now there was an obsession for doubles of prominent people for sale. Nice... or not.

His eyes snapped back to the corner of the screen, seeing a dozen of texts IKaiba had fired out of anxiousness at his expression, and he scoffed.

"Pray tell why you selected this one?"

**I did not detect anything related to the sex industry.**

"Dudes' dicks in full display are not related to sex for you?," Katsuya replied incredulously.

**Female escorts are often represented with exposed body parts, mostly their breasts, considered exciting by the targeted customer base of such sites, if I understood correctly. Therefore, I saw no harm in male escorts exposing their penises, although I must admit I felt quite uncomfortable too, for reasons I cannot explain.**

The blonde snorted at that.

"Maybe because you're not into this. When you're not the 'targeted customer base', as you say, seeing dicks anywhere else than porn movies or showers is quite gross. To me, serious agencies don't resort to such means to attract customers, quite the contrary."

Not that he had experience in escorts and their industry, but well, he just did not like boobs and dicks being flaunted at his face, much less with prostitution poorly disguised as classy services. He was not a posh-tart, but he was not an animal either, thank you very much. He had respect for his human peers.

IKaiba took some time to answer, which gave Katsuya time to close the offending site and try to chase the crude photos out of his mind. Especially those soft blue eyes.

"Could you erase this site?," he asked at last. "Not that it's more sickening than the others, but-"

 **I understand** , the text came instantly with a ping, **my apologies for this mistake. I did not realize such pictures were that rude.**

"No prob, K. We've seen worse, and if you only look at the text, it could have fooled anyone. But gosh, try to be careful next time. I've seen enough dicks for the rest of my life."

**Your customs are quite strange, J. You Japanese people can go to public baths without any problem, but a penis on a screen makes you cringe. You have got huge portions of hard memory dedicated to pornographic content, but speaking of it is taboo. I do not see what the matter is with your intimate parts.**

"Huh." The blonde had the decency to blush at that, even if he felt dumbstruck. "Er, to be honest, I've nothing against crude things, per se. Hell, I saw much worse when I was part of Hirutani's gang. However, I don't like 'intimate parts', like you say, being exhibited like meat at a butcher's stall. I think sex, and people's bodies, are not to be sold. I know sometimes it's a last resort thing, but I can't conceive the idea of sex without that of love. I need sex, I love having sex, but I wouldn't fuck anyone just for fun, especially not a person _employed_ for this, even if they look good. Ugh, it's undermining people to mere objects you can dispose of once they've been used. I hate the idea."

**So you are saying that sex is both something you need, and something you choose to do, or not. I am not sure I understand completely, but I can see where you are going.**

"Sorry, K. Sometimes I forget you've not experienced sex."

**Say I am a virgin, while you are at it.**

It was light teasing, Katsuya knew, but his face flushed nonetheless.

**Don't explode, I am not offended. Contrarily to you, I am not embarrassed by my not having made love yet. I do not have a body for this. However, I can join you on the opinion that I would not like doing such a thing with a total stranger. I think I can say I would only need this with someone I love. If I knew what love is, that is.**

The blonde suddenly felt very, very dumb. He had been lecturing IKaiba on his morals about love and desire, while the AI had no idea what he was talking about in the first place.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I was insensitive, here, wasn't I?"

**I forgive you. Frankly, all those debates about people's appearances sound stupid to me, even if I can understand why humans entertain them. Society decided of those norms, and even I have difficulties to overcome them. But I am more interested in people's minds and characters, before the way they look, so I am not really interested in those sites. I doubt I will ever be, in any case.**

"Oh, right. You're more on the brainy side, then." Katsuya nodded with a smile. "That's logical, just like you."

**If you say so. And you? What do you search for in a suitable partner?**

The blonde was frozen for a moment, thinking of an answer. When he found one, he took in a breath and began, "I'm not sure. I'm certainly more influenced by looks than you. With Mai, it was a powerful physical attraction, at first. I was young, and I found her gorgeous. After some time, I unveiled her hidden personality, and that was when I fell in love with her. We lived in sync, we had the same dreams, the same taste for independence, and we trusted each other. Now, I don't think I have a type. I wouldn't fall in love with another Mai if she wasn't like her. I guess I'd just be happy to find someone who'd love me as I am, with whom I'd found a home and family."

**And you would do so with only a woman? Not with a man?**

At that, he frowned. He had not thought about that.

"I don't know. I've never been interested in men, really. I've never thought I could be. In fact, I've never really thought about gender, I guess I just followed my heart's desire and didn't introspect too much."

**And if you found your ideal partner in a man, now? Would you reject them?**

Katsuya's frown deepened. Where was IKaiba getting at?

"I don't know. I can't picture myself with a man, but it may be 'cause I don't know what it's like. I've never been with someone else than Mai, and I've only looked at girls. As you say, society makes norms, and to me, it's always been normal that I looked at girls and no one else. I had Mai, then I had my father's debt to pay, and I've never thought of thinking about such things in depth."

On second thought, he added, "You know, if I were narrow-minded, I wouldn't even be friends with you. No offense. Now's actually the first time I've really thought about gender differences. Maybe I'm being dumb not minding such things."

**I do not think so. At least, you are realistic and tactful on the matter, and you are right, there was no reason for you to introspect on such things. I apologize for asking something that insensitive.**

"Don't, that's okay. It's normal that you ask, and I promised I would answer. I'm not sure I'm much help, though. Honestly, it's been a while since I last thought about having a relationship with anyone at all."

**Because of your father?**

The room seemed to shrink around him. The blonde inhaled sharply, seized by painful memories as the question rung between his ears. His computer went off with a string of apologies, and he shook his head.

"Nah, I'm good." A pause, then, "Yeah, that. T'would not be respectful if I brought someone into my mess, even more so if they're someone I love."

**May I ask something else?**

If IKaiba asked, it meant Katsuya would not like the question. He still nodded.

"Shoot."

**Do you still love Mai?**

Ah. Now, that was tricky. He stayed silent for a few seconds, before he sighed deeply.

"I guess so, but I'm not sure. I'm feeling a little empty without her in my life, as if she ripped out a chunk of me when I pushed her away. But it's been what? Two years? The pain's always been here, but lately it's felt... dull. It was unbearable, at first, I felt alone and miserable, and I regretted my choice even though I knew it was the right thing to do. Now... Now I'm not so alone anymore. Isono found me, and since he did, I've found new friends, and I've met a partner in crime," he added smiling at his computer, a smile meant for IKaiba. "I'm still sad about it, but my life's changing, and I'm changing too. Maybe I can hope for a brighter future, with or without her. We'll have to see?"

This sounded like a question, for the blonde did not know if the AI would stay with him until then. When IKaiba answered, he realized he should not worry over it.

**I would love to see that with you.**

The rookie grinned at the screen, relieved. Then, he stretched in his chair, sighing.

"Sooo, now that we've cleared this, I think we should go back to work. Regardless of our tastes, we have to abide to Kaiba's."

**You are right. However, I still do not like this.**

"Neither do I, K."

With a mournful sigh, he went back to the screen where IKaiba had corrected the list of selected websites. The link he clicked on redirected him to a classier page than what he had seen so far. At least this time, the escorts advertised had clothes on. He browsed through the pages, disconnecting his brain from the pictures and tempting smiles so as not to think about how disgusting the system felt to him.

After a while, he had narrowed the list down to three agencies. He noted them down on his notepad and scheduled a time to check on them more thoroughly, then he shut off his computer and decided he would _never_ do something like this again. Even under torture.

 **Are we finished?** , his phone displayed with a blip.

It was a rhetorical question.

"Yeah, any plans?," Katsuya replied.

**I could order you take-out from your favorite place. Burger World, is it? And I would like to test out my new deck, if you do not mind. I am sure Mokuba could give us access to one of the labs.**

The rookie snorted, amused.

"Obsessed much, now aren't you?"

**I merely want to build the perfect deck. Who knows, I may use it more often in the near future.**

"If you say so. Anyway, I'm always up to burgers and duels."

**I would not dare to think otherwise.**

His afternoon planned, the blonde pocketed his phone and went out of his office. Unbeknownst to him, IKaiba was still working. Carefully, the AI was coding the deck of the virtual version of the blonde, that would be uploaded into the world of _Duel Links_. Kaiba was still hunting down the one that had meddled with his beloved virtual Yami, even if he only did so when he had a second to spare aside from his usual work load. Isono was not pleased, and IKaiba had to find a solution soon to avert a crisis from happening.

Fortunately, he had one. And if he planned his moves carefully, he would solve both this problem and Jonouchi's. For when he succeeded, Kaiba would never be mad over his puny King of Games anymore, and he would never, ever feel the need to ask for an escort.

Katsuya would be happy, in many ways. Agent K would make sure of it.


	12. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi :D  
> OMG I'm terribly late for this chapter ><" It was originally planned for Halloween, but life decided against it...  
> So it's published months later *facepalm*  
> I hope you'll still like it ^^

 

“Let's recapitulate one last time,” Isono said, checking a list on his smartphone – his transportable working life –, “Security?”

“Checked three times, IKaiba's in for a fourth,” Katsuya answered smoothly, his eyes fixated on the road before him. He wanted to scratch his neck badly.

“Stage.”

“Check.”

“Sound and screens.”

“Check. IKaiba on backup.”

If Kaiba did not look at his best with all the work his bodyguards had put into the show, the blonde swore he would gladly kick his ass, consequences be damned.

“Invitations.”

“Sent a month ago and mostly answered.”

“Catering.”

“Check. Got some more in case we have unannounced guests.”

There were loads of food ready in KC tower's hall for KaibaCorp's special guests and privileged partners, all coming straight out of the _Fleur de Lys_. Kaiba had not commented when Katsuya had told him the name of the caterer, but he had been even more civil the whole day after. Guess he liked it.

“Snacks.”

“Have three sorts, one of them is low on calories.”

Not sure about that one, but the rookie had figured some variety would not hurt his boss. In any case, he doubted the CEO would eat any of them.

“Drinks.”

“Tanks of water in the car, bottles at hand.”

He could flood half of Africa with what the Manor had in its stocks.

“Speech.”

“Copied.”

Kaiba did not need any printed copy of his speech, but Katsuya had written down the main ideas and the organization of the whole thing for himself, so that he could anticipate in case of emergency.

His neck itched more and more, to the point it was hardly bearable. Gosh, he hated this shirt.

“Don't scratch,” Isono warned him.

“Nah, wouldn't want to crease it.”

Katsuya really did not. It was likely he would be filmed and appear on screen, as he was to stay close to the CEO at all times, and cameras could catch a glimpse of him when he and the rest of the security staff moved to accompany their boss as he changed places. So, he had bought a brand new, classy extra shirt to appease his mind about the ordeal. It was futile, but at least he was sure he would look his smartest, and Isono had complimented him enough to confirm he had made the right choice.

But the new fabric itched on his sweating skin. Thank God he had an ordinary uniform shirt to change before the gala.

Isono hummed and went back to his list.

“Orphanage donations.”

“Ready to be delivered.”

“Good. Lastly, Halloween decorations.”

“Huh?”

 _Where'd it come from?_ Katsuya was stunned for a moment, but he focused on the road to avoid making a strange face. Why would they need Halloween stuff?

“You remember we are October 31, don't you? Director Kaiba did not really care, but Mr Kaiba suggested we included some Halloween touches to the gala, for entertainment's sake.”

“Oh.”

The blonde had to think hard so as not to appear completely out of it, but his thoughts crashed like a massive train wreck. What happened to him, that he had obliterated two full weeks of time? Last he checked, they were in mid-October. Or maybe they were not. His brain felt like mush and he resisted the urge to scratch his neck.

“Katsuya...”

“Yes, yes,” he replied hastily to cover his confusion, “I remember. They'll be ready.”

At least he hoped he had ordered some. If not, he hoped IKaiba had thought of it in his place.

But seriously, when did Kaiba say they had the launching announcement, again? Was it really October 31? The blonde wanted to doubt it, but if his mentor said so...

Katsuya glanced at the digital clock of the car and noticed that yes, they were indeed October 31. Still, he felt as if it was wrong. As if it should not be this... late. He had checked out everything on Isono's list so far, but he realized he could actually not remember doing any of those. He had answered automatically, without thinking. Which meant he had done all of these. He had to. Yet he could not remember.

_What the hell._

“Are you okay, Katsuya?,” his mentor asked with a frown. “I know you're tired, but we're nearly there. Just some more hours.”

His own voice sounded strained, and the blonde snapped out of his paranoid thinking. Isono was right. It was only five in the morning, but the blonde was already feeling exhausted. Days and days of intense preparations for the upcoming event did that to you. It should really not be that surprising that he was completely disoriented. Mystery solved.

 _I seriously lack sleep_ , he concluded with a mental shrug. _I'll sleep fer three days straight after dat. 'T'll do me a lot of good._

The promise of sleep brightened his stressed mood. He prayed all the gods he knew that he survived the day. Most importantly, he prayed that he would not make a fool of himself, otherwise both Isono _and_ Kaiba would chase him down to hell and bring his sorry ass back to kill him themselves.

With that in mind, he focused on pulling out of the road and into the parking lot reserved for KC's employees, and squared his shoulders to face the next twenty-four hours.

 

* * *

“What d'ye mean, ye can't find 'im?”

Katsuya was frantically pacing up and down the corridor on the highest floor, his phone glued to his face as he talked to Mokuba, all pretense dropped. The younger Kaiba was as panicked as he, if not more, and his voice high-pitched as he answered.

“I don't know, he's not here! I checked all the rooms, the secret passageway, the basement, and even the car trunks. He's. Not. Here!”

The rookie forced himself not to scream at the boy. It would only increase their stress. He could not let his frustration out now. It was not a code red. If anything, it was an effing code _black_. Like, Shadow Realm black.

They were to go on stage in an hour. Everything was ready, and they only missed the main actor of it all. Except said person was nowhere to be found, and his little brother had no idea of where he could be.

Seto Kaiba, the best known celebrity on Earth, a six-foot-tall drama king with a signature white flapping coat, had vanished into thin air. Without leaving any trace. Sixty minutes before one of the most important events concerning his company's development.

Now was a good time to curl up into a ball and die. Or resign and flee far away from this galaxy. Because if they did not find a solution soon, they were screwed.

The call ended quickly after that, with Mokuba almost bawling in anxiety. Katsuya promised himself he would find his boss at all costs, if only to calm down the boy. He could not stand him being so helpless and sad.

He typed a text and sent it to **Agent K**.

**Found anything new?**

The answer pinged immediately.

**No.**

Now _that_ was worrying. If even the most powerful AI on Earth could not find a trace of Kaiba, hope was sinking pretty quickly.

Isono called him. His colleague's face was carefully blank, but Katsuya knew that this only masked his own fears.

“Nothing,” he announced gravely. “You?”

“Nothing more.”

They eyed each other glumly. Fifty-five minutes until the announcement. A decision had to be made.

“We need to find a replacement,” Isono expressed their thoughts out-loud. “Someone looking enough like Director Kaiba, to be on stage and at the gala for a handful of minutes at least, if only for the press and guests present. Mr Kaiba could do the rest, if he feels up to the task.”

This could work. Fortunately, the rookie had the copy of Kaiba's speech ideas, and they could arrange a make-up speech satisfying enough for the public and investors. Could they find someone, though? Was it really necessary? The blonde voiced his concerns, and Isono sighed.

“We don't have many options.”

True enough. But they had to find an actor in, like, forty-seven minutes, and brief him on the work. And make sure they held their tongues, with a comfortable tip. This was an almost impossible task. Grand.

Fortunately, Ra was kind enough to bless them with the existence of IKaiba, who made his presence known with a series of pings from Katsuya's phone. The blonde held the device for him and Isono to read.

**I recollect J stumbled upon an escort page about a human doppelganger of Kaiba. Not perfectly like him, obviously, but close enough to fool everyone. I can try to reach him.**

The elder bodyguard's brow shot upward, and his eyes zeroed on his protegee, whose ears were suddenly very red. Oh yes, the blonde remembered quite well the gentle, mesmerizing blue eyes of the man advertised as a copycat of his boss. Could they really trust an escort with the daring, essential task of being Seto Kaiba on stage, in front of billions of spectators?

“Can we trust him?,” Isono voiced their doubts.

**I fear we do not have much of a choice.**

IKaiba was right. Forty-five minutes.

“I don't know,” the blonde hummed, “I know where you're going, but he's an escort. We already discussed this.”

**Try to see it in another light. We are offering him a job as an actor, not as a prostitute. There is nothing shameful here.**

He was right again, and Katsuya could not deny it, despite his previous reluctance. It was time to gamble. He sighed heavily and took a decision.

“Call him, if you can.”

**Of course.**

 

* * *

_One hour, two gallons of water, and a near heart attack later_

 

Katsuya had seen many strange things in his life. Being involved with a three-thousand-year-old, magic wielding pharaoh, did not help normalcy. With his pals, the blonde had lived more adventures than a man his age should count, and he had thought he was done with weirdness as a whole.

He had obviously not taken into account the Sen parameter, which had to be acknowledged as a ticking bomb ready to blow up in his face.

He took it on himself to call the escort and to offer him the job of saving their miserable carcasses, in exchange for an obscene amount of cash. Meanwhile, IKaiba was putting together a contract, both to make the deal a real thing, and to make sure the man had no escape should he not be trusted.

The rookie was surprised to be greeted by a low, rumbling baritone. His voice was a tad lower than Kaiba's, but for a splitting second, Katsuya was fooled.

“Hello?”

“Am I talking to Sen?”

He chastised himself for not checking the escort's real name.

“Speaking.” The tone shifted slightly to a more cajoling one. “How can I help you, sir?”

 _Don't be embarrassed, don't be embarrassed, don't be embarrassed._ He repeated the sentence in his head to keep himself grounded and professional.

Forty-two minutes.

“I am glad I could reach you, sir. I would like to call on your services for twenty-four hours, for a most demanding task that would require skills you prove to possess. Would you be available from... now?”

No need to beat around the bush. Either the escort said yes right away and that was good, or he said no and they found another solution.

The man did not answer immediately, probably stunned into silence. When he did, however, his voice was close to a purr.

“Oh, I see. Hasty, I don't dislike it. However, this will be charged more.”

He was not against the idea, at least. Katsuya nearly sighed out of relief.

“Of course. You will be largely compensated for your trouble, as well as for your discretion on what you are about to do.”

“Silent as a grave. However, for that kind of stuff, you should contact my agency first.”

He was being suspicious. Not good. The rookie went all-in.

“I had your agency. Given the short notice for the job I am offering you, they gave me your number, and here we are. I hate to rush things, but I am afraid I will need your answer now. If you accept, you will have to sign a contract and begin immediately, with half the amount paid upfront and half after completion. If not, I will hang up and never attempt to bother you again.”

Silence. Maybe he went too strong on him? The blonde felt dread well up in his stomach.

Forty minutes.

“Well,” he continued after a long pause, “in that case...”

“Okay, okay,” the other interrupted, “I accept. Fifty thousand.”

“Yen?”

“Dollars. American.”

Katsuya shrugged. It made no difference to him. It was Kaiba's money, after all.

“Make it fifty-five thousand if you can join me at the following address within ten minutes.”

He gave the address of his own apartment. There would be less risks there. He silently motioned to Isono, who got the message and arranged things while the rookie finished the phone conversation.

They would have less than thirty minutes to turn a total stranger into Mister Ice Drama King and Camera Bitch. Then, they would have to search for the real Kaiba, as discreetly as possible, while they accompanied said stranger to the announcement and the gala and pretended he was Kaiba. Saving KaibaCorp and saving Kaiba at the same time. Was it not Katsuya's wildest dream.

“Got it,” the escort reverted back into a seductive purr, “now should I take my naughty virgin costume, so that you could sink your unholy fangs into me?”

Yeah, definitely a dream come true. At least, when the culprits behind Kaiba's disappearance were found, they would have the pleasure to be handled by Mokuba. Or not. On second thought, absolutely not. Katsuya was too young to go coffin-shopping.

 

* * *

_A few minutes later_

 

“When you said it was going to be demanding, I hadn't imagined it would be _that_ demanding. Not that I complain.”

Katsuya did not reply. Not when he had a half-naked twin of Seto Kaiba in his living room. The male escort had been true to his word when he had promised he would be here in ten minutes – eight and a half, actually –, surely because there had been five thousand dollars at stake. The blonde had waited for him with one of Kaiba's suits, the aforementioned contract, and bundles of cash into a briefcase. After a brief greeting, he had shoved the clothes into the other's hands and asked him to change.

So far, Sen was taking things in stride. He had raised a brow when he saw that his 'client' was fully clad and deadly serious when speaking to him, but he did not feel threatened or trapped. When doing a job as his, he had come to know when people represented a threat or not at first glance, and this blonde chap was not. Stressed out, but not dangerous. He even looked like he was embarrassed, which was downright laughable, and a little cute. He hired an escort advertised as open to cosplay fetishes. They were beyond embarrassment at this point. But maybe it was his first time.

Still, Katsuya could not help being uncomfortable. He proceeded to explain the details of the job while Sen was changing. He did not look at his bare torso – he had already seen it on the website, anyway –, but he kept him in his peripheral vision.

“I will be honest with you,” he began, “I'm not interested in your skills as an escort, but as... let's say an actor.”

Sen hummed, slightly pouting.

“I see. The virgin costume would have clearly been overrated, then.”

The blonde cleared his throat.

“Indeed. What I mean is, I would like you to say a speech in front of a dozen cameras, as Seto Kaiba.”

The escort's head shot up so quickly, that Katsuya feared he might have whiplash. The brunet's eyes bore into him, flabbergasted, trying to search for any sign of joking.

Sadly, the rookie was not. And when Sen realized this, he gaped slightly. He was much more expressive than Kaiba, in that aspect.

“Man, that's... I mean, I can certainly do it, it's easier than strip-teasing on a toilet bowl with high heels, but...”

 _Don't ask, don't wanna know._ Still, Katsuya's brain imagined the scene for a millisecond, and got scarred for life. He decided he would kill Kaiba's abductors with his bare hands, even if they turn to be Kaiba himself.

Thirty-four minutes.

“That is not all,” he added. “After the speech, I need you to appear at a gala organized by KaibaCorp, and entertain a group of its most important guests and associates.”

Sen smirked at that.

“That'd be more my usual thing. Entertaining people, I mean.”

The blonde nodded.

“I take it you are still in, then.”

The smirk turned into a grin.

“Wouldn't be here if not.”

“Good. After you change, I need you to sign the contract and read your speech carefully. We made it simple and clear, and I will be there at all times, should you need assistance.”

“Can I ask where the boss is?”

By the boss, he meant the actual Kaiba. Katsuya's lips pressed into a thin line.

“Director Kaiba is unavailable at the moment, hence our requesting your services. Rest assured that your intervention is greatly appreciated and, as promised, you will be rewarded for your efforts.”

“Alright, alright. Touchy subject, I get it. You're a tough guy to deal with, you know that?”

Katsuya only snorted. If only he knew what kind of man the blonde was in his free time, he would be very surprised. But then again, the rookie knew nothing of the escort either. No more words were exchanged after that, and the rest of the briefing passed quickly. Isono picked them up in an adjacent alleyway, and off they were to the first stage. Mokuba was sitting stiffly in the back seat next to his fake brother, his fists clenched on his knees and his eyes haunted. Both bodyguards prayed the gods that everything turned out okay in the end.

Still no trace of Kaiba. Even IKaiba had no clue. Of course it would not be okay.

 

* * *

_One hour later_

 

_Thank de gods we're alive. No one notices anything._

The launching event was going more or less smoothly so far, with Mokuba playing his part masterfully despite his growing anguish. The speech went without a hack, and the blonde tailed Sen everywhere, scaring away prying reporters and overbearing fans. He made sure no one came too close to notice the Kaiba they had in front of them, was not quite Kaiba. For that purpose, his rough _yankee_ looks helped a great deal. That, and the fact that Sen Kaiba looked glued to him in a mix of condescending 'don't bother me peasant' way, coupled with a 'I'm nice enough to look at you and sketch a ghost of a smile, so respect me and stand back' way. It was both typical Kaibaness, and distorted generosity from said Kaiba, and the fans fawning over him looked positively excited. The rookie did not understand such passion, but he was glad they stayed away.

Except that Sen Kaiba was _really_ glued to him, like, almost physically glued. The distance between them was ridiculously short, to the point that Katsuya could lean slightly forward and take a nap on Sen's back if he wanted to – that man was as tall as the actual Kaiba, much to the rookie's dismay –. It was difficult to say if it was only part of the people-repelling act, or if the man sought out the blonde's presence – consciously or not – as a means to reassure him. Sure, as an escort, he might have encountered hyper fans before, but maybe not that many at a time. Maybe he was not used to such attention, in fact. For a moment, Katsuya felt sorry for him.

Finally, after a race of speech then autographs then navigating through the crowd to the car, the pair stumbled down not so gracefully on the leather seat and let out a huge sigh. They had a ten-minute break until they reached the next event, which was a press conference. Then there was a meeting with the Board – ugh –, then they could grab a quick lunch, then they would change and head to the donation at the orphanage, and finish this excruciating day with the gala, the apex of the whole damn thing, with rounds of handshakes and polite words and effing smiles. Kaiba was not fond of those, and for once, Katsuya agreed with him. Maybe he would book a face massage for Sen after that, because the poor chap's cheeks were going to hurt a lot.

 

* * *

_In the evening_

 

Katsuya's feet, head, and freaking nerves were killing him by the minute. Still no trace of Kaiba. Sen being swarmed up in crowds like a pot of honey among flies. Mokuba ready to burst in tears the longer the day stretched on without any news. And the two closest bodyguards of the Kaiba brothers were in the eye of the storm.

To make things worse, it looked like the guests all wanted their fair share of Kaiba's attention, and it was a umpteenth miracle that no one had noticed anything out of place. Sen was probably dying inside, and Katsuya made a mental note to add a comfortable tip on top of the amount they had agreed to pay the escort. Possibly to allow him to retire from this job. He deserved it.

After a long couple of hours, dinner was ready to be served, and the rookie sighed internally. Finally, once everyone was seated, he could take a few seconds to go to the loo and drink and check on IKaiba's progress. But mostly have a few seconds to himself, before he got enough and hit a guest's head with a candelabrum.

He excused himself and slid into one of the facilities on the lower floor, breathing in deeply once he was alone. He rubbed his face warily, praying any deity kind enough to listen that they needed to find his boss soon, otherwise hell was bound to break loose for good.

Halloween It was, indeed. The most frightening day of Katsuya's life, without a doubt. But here, he did not think Kaiba would knock on the door and ask for a treat. The trick had been running since the moment he disappeared... and the blonde felt too tired to have too coherent thoughts anymore.

Splashing cold water on his face, he gathered his resolve and breathed slowly. He was mercifully alone, and he intended to use that time to his advantage. Not for long, unfortunately, as Isono also deserved his few seconds of respite...

“Well, lookie, here's our little puppy ~”

Katsuya jumped, his hand reaching for the taser to his belt. This voice could not exist.

A cackle.

“Really, Susan, it's Halloween! The perfect evening for me to visit.”

Yami Marik leaned lazily on the tiled wall, his head tilted to the side in questioning. The rookie gripped his self-defense weapon, ready to attack should the maniac move a pinky. He would not be afraid. He would not.

“So... nice of you to come,” he said. _Don't show weakness. Buy time. IKaiba will alert someone._ “But I'd rather you be gone.”

The spirit grinned lopsidedly at him, purple eyes gleaming in the neon light.

“Why, this isn't how you should treat someone offering gifts. I came all the way with your candy, you might as well enjoy it and thank me.”

Wow, it was turning out downright strange. And creepy. Katsuya frowned, not letting his guard down.

“Candy.”

Yami Marik offered a toothy grin.

“Yes. Don't you like candy, puppy? I like candy. But I swear I didn't taste yours. Too hard to my tastes.”

The rookie scanned the area briefly, checking if he had missed something. The room felt suddenly much darker than what he remembered. This was peculiar, considering the standards of the building.

“I wouldn't accept anything from a freak like you.”

He hoped he had not angered the spirit too much, for he remembered the last time darkness licked at his soul. But the other simply arched a brow.

“Oh? Even if he's your sugar daddy?”

_Wait, what?_

It did not make sense. And yet, as Katsuya's brain began to analyze the man's words, it did. Horribly so.

Dots that should never have been together in the place, connected. Kaiba's disappearance. Halloween. Yami Marik on the loose. He. Candy.

Anger flared in his veins. He took out his taser and aimed at the spirit.

“What did you do to him, you monster?,” he shouted. “Tell me where he is, or the gods help me-”

“What, Susan?” Yami Marik took a step forward, his lips twisting and stretching impossibly. “I've never been a living thing, remember? Just a ghost. What could you do?”

The rookie stepped back, his fingers frozen, his insides feeling like jelly. Ra, those eyes. Purple pools of complete madness, swirling and boiling and menacing to suffocate him.

One more step. Two. Three. The wall finally compromised his escape backwards. His heart leaped in panic. An impossible tune rang in his ears. His thoughts in a jumble, he could not avoid the hand that captured his neck.

Curiously, though, it did not hurt. But Katsuya felt his consciousness vanishing anyway.

Before his vision went dark, he glanced one more time into Yami Marik's eyes...

And he jumped wide awake, his alarm blaring his favorite song.

Blearily, Katsuya took some time to gather himself. Where was he, again? Where was Yami Marik? Kaiba? Sen? What...?

“Katsuya, are you alright?”

The blonde's attention snapped to the origin of the voice. In front of him, his duel disk was projecting IKaiba's form, hand half raised in an aborted attempt to reach to him. The face of the AI was scrunched up in worry.

What happened? Katsuya rubbed his eyes, looking around. He recognized his duffel bag in a corner, then his covers, his nightstand, his phone...

He took the device and checked on the date. October 18. _The fuck._

“Katsuya,” IKaiba repeated, “I am failing to understand. What are you doing?”

A dream. It had all been a fucking nightmare. Thank the gods.

The rookie fell back on his pillow with a sigh, covering his eyes with an arm.

“A dream...”

“Sorry?”

“I've had a nasty dream, K. Sorry if I worried you.”

A silence, then, “Worried? Katsuya, you were mumbling and tossing, and then suddenly, you screamed at the top of your lungs. I am more than worried... Oh, your neighbors up are calling the police, by the way. They think you are hosting a murdering party, or something. They sound quite angry.”

“I'll deal with that.”

“No need. I've answered in the place of the authorities. If you promise you won't do that again, there would be no reason for them to do anything more.”

Katsuya sat up again, sheepish.

“Heh, thanks... Erm, did I say strange things?”

IKaiba stared at him.

“You mentioned Kaiba and Sen. Something about searching them. And Yami Marik. I recollect he was one of the participants to the Battle City tournament, and he is the avatar of _Duel Links_ 's next event. However, I fail to see why you would dream of him, and I think I won't be able to understand without your explanation on this. I won't push you into it, though, I just want to know if you are okay, or if you need me to contact an ambulance.”

The blonde shook his head.

“Nah. Guess 'ave worked a bit too much lately. An' da guy reminds me of too many unpleasant memories. 'T'll pass once da event is finished.”

“Unpleasant?” The AI's frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, er. 'T'll be hard to explain, but, um, let's say he was quite creepy and maniacal in 'is way of dueling. Would haunt anyone sane at a time like dis.”

“I- all right. I hope it is just what you say. I do not like it, when you are this agitated.”

Warmth filled Katsuya's chest, replacing the cold dread he had been feeling under the spirit's abyssal gaze.

“I'm okay, K. Thanks for the concern, though.”

The AI nodded, unconvinced.

After a while, the blonde eventually smirked, a thought imposing itself in his mind.

“Hey, you noticed you called me Katsuya?”

IKaiba looked taken off guard for a moment, then he snorted.

“That is your fault for worrying me.”

He laughed heartily at that.

“My sincerest apologies, my lord.”

He was just glad he was not alone.

The artificial being feigned offense, but he could not resist that laugh. After a while, he finally smiled himself, relieved that his human was okay. Just a dream...

In the meantime, however, he was frantically combing through dark networks and forums. Something was nagging him from another source. His captors were currently catching waves from an unknown emitter, right from KC tower. His security feed assured him that no one had entered the building except from the usual employees, and Kaiba's office had remained empty since Kaiba had left, about an hour ago. Such a strange occurrence was troubling. He fired a quick text for Isono to go check that out later. Maybe one of the devices in development was malfunctioning.

It could wait a while longer. For now, his human was okay, and that was all that mattered.

“Say,” he eventually continued, “why is that, that you dreamed of Sen? Would you like me to contact him? Maybe you _were_ interested in hiring him for the evening.”

The reaction he got was priceless. Nothing better than light teasing to ease tension away, psychologists said. He could see why.

 


	13. Chapter 12

The launch of the new  _duel disk_  system was a tremendous success. Duelist recognition according to the deck database proved to charm everyone, particularly the pros whose favorite monsters felt like old friends after years of dueling. Jonouchi was of them, though Seto had yet to acknowledge him as truly worthy of the pro status. Had he been less biased, he probably would have. But his pride told him to think otherwise. In the dueling department, at least.

Aside from that, the CEO had not forgotten the mess-up with virtual Yami's deck level in  _Duel Links_ , but he had been unsuccessful in his search for the culprit _._  His anger had only been slightly abated by the high sales and popularity his new product got on the market, and his need to duel a worthy opponent had been itching more than ever.

His bodyguard had resumed his job and accompanied him on all his public appearances with stunning professionalism, though he had looked quite cautious around him. No, 'cautious' did not cut it. More like 'clingy', in a bodyguard-like manner. Jonouchi had observed a strictly short distance of one feet from Seto, no more, no less, and radiated an aura telling clearly that no one was to mess with him today. Even though it had been quite efficient, thus saving the brunet from being squashed by hysteric fans, it had felt a little off, and very, very overrated. With Mokuba, why not, but him? He was a fully grown man, for heaven's sake. He could bear with mobs here and there.

Not that he had not appreciated the small respite. He liked the attention, and he could indulge people once in a while, as they were basically the ones giving him and his employees a living, but he had to admit the blonde's attitude was pleasing, albeit strange. Maybe it was his way of showing he wanted to stay in KC's ranks, like a puppy proving he could be a good hound. That much effort could be taken into account in a positive way, at least, all the more when it was efficient. Some of the slackers in his Sales Department might learn from such hard work.

Now that this was out of the way, the  _Duel Links_  app was the next project to be developed fully. It would be released in January, just after the usual KaibaLand festival scheduled for Christmas, and Seto wanted it to be accessible to everyone, avoiding the usual pitfall of having to pay to play. Rewards would be generous, and users could pay for nice – but totally optional – add-ons such as games mats, card sleeves, or more packs from booster boxes. Progress through the stages should be possible with or without monetary input, if decks were carefully thought of.

The world in itself was reaching its beta testing stage. Generic NPCs had been finalized, and legendary duelists were being modeled. Of course, Seto's virtual avatar had been the first to be created, followed by Yami – even if he had to be checked by the developing team because of his glitches, much to the CEO's dismay – and Jonouchi.

At first, Seto had only begun the process of creating the blonde's avatar out of revenge, so that he could crush him and reaffirm his authority over the two other traitors. However, studies had shown that, with his lowly social background, his fiery and likable personality, and his instinctive way of playing – Seto saw him as a lucky beggar –, he actually was one of the most popular dueling figures, after the obvious top two champions of course. Therefore, his initiative had killed two birds with one stone, and it was not surprising to find advanced coding for the decks that virtual Jonouchi would use.

What slightly surprised Seto, however, was that these were  _this_ advanced. It had taken his engineers two months to balance his and Yami's decks nicely, then assemble the King of Games' avatar and punchlines. He had approved these recently, and the developing team had just fully set on making other features of the game. And here, he found out that Jonouchi was almost completed too, without having heard about it beforehand.

True, he had been quite occupied, and he had enough of the mutt on a daily basis to look for things about his virtual self too. But he should have been informed. He should have been asked to control the ongoing task. This was standard procedure, as demanded by him. Were his best developers just a bunch of morons?

With a scoff, and deciding the new offer of his commercial partners could wait, Seto dove into the data. In fact, he soon got stunned by the fact that all three virtual legendary duelists were finished, and tests were currently being conducted with them. Seto's decks were perfect – obviously –, Yami's had been corrected, and Jonouchi's... Jonouchi's were quite nicely thought of, actually. Maybe better than the real ones he had seen so far.

The brunet skipped through the lines of coding, scanning the selected cards with mild interest. These could prove challenging against his blue-eyes, if played correctly. Maybe his developers were not that much of morons. He had hired them himself, after all.

His itch to duel rekindled. He thrived with challenges. Why not test out those decks, and see for himself.

Then his eyes caught the sight of something soberly named 'Super Jonouchi', and his curiosity piqued, along with his irritation.

_Who's made a level 50 deck for the mutt? I've not asked for anything of the kind!_

His anger quickly melted into interest once again, when he had a quick look at the code and cards. Now  _this_  looked promising, even if it was the dumb blonde they were talking about. Thinking about it, it could indeed please the general public to see one of their favorite duelists, a commoner like them, on the front for once, and not only the top two champions. 'Super Jonouchi' could be used in an event of sorts, with high challenges for experts, and nice dueling times for newbies. Clever...

Seto would not admit he was very pleasantly surprised, for he should not be that surprised in the first place, but he could not deny he was tempted to go down to the pods and have a go at dueling the level 50 deck of Super Jonouchi. After the fiasco with Yami, he could not get more disappointed, anyway. At least, if the blonde lost, it would have been expected, awaited even. Seto just wanted to see if the AI could oppose some resistance.

An idea popped in his head, and he glanced at the real Jonouchi. The rookie was standing in the farthest corner, his eyes fixed on nothing in particular, like a statue. He had been allowed a quick break about half an hour ago – or else Mokuba would have had Seto's head for treating his employee like crap –, and he looked both stoic and aware, and in good health and physical condition. He could not have been any less than that, he had been pampered by Seto's staff, and Seto himself had made efforts to help the blonde recover quickly, albeit under the pointed stares of both Isono and his little brother.

He really should have a discussion with them, about their choice of liked acquaintances and battles. The taste of betrayal was one he intended to never taste, ever again.

Jonouchi had not been informed of the development of the app, but the CEO figured Isono must have told him that he was included in the game's characters at some point. He would have to sign a clause allowing KC to use his face and voice, but it was fairly certain he would accept right away. However, he might not have seen the deck designed for him, and even if Seto could not care less about his opinion, he decided he could reward the mutt with a few spoilers. He  _had_ done a good job so far. With that in mind, the brunet turned fully to his employee.

"Jonouchi," he called, "come here."

Katsuya eyed his boss questioningly while obeying. Frankly, he was exhausted, his nightmare of Yami Marik kidnapping Kaiba still haunting him. If he was honest about it, he knew the spirit had been sent to the Shadow Realm by Atem, but if a 3000-year-old pharaoh and a freaking tomb robber mixed with a monster with a dragon penis could return from darkness, why could Marik's worst side not find a way to come back too?

It appeared that nothing would disturb the actual event however, for which he was immensely grateful, though one could never be too careful. He had stuck with his boss and played his bodyguard part a little too seriously, making sure everyone in a ten-meter radius knew they would not dare come closer than he already was, or there would be hell to pay. He had been in no mood for indulging fans, even if Kaiba was in one of his rare phases when he showed his smiling side.

Which was creepy. Not only did a smiling Seto Kaiba call for the genocide of millions of puppies, a non-smiling Katsuya Jonouchi was like a Yugi Mutou without his Dark Magician. Even if the blonde was used to his role, he had always shown a sunny side to the public, and he had felt like a sore thumb not doing so at the launching event.

Some people seemed to have noticed him, although they had not paid too much attention to him, rather focusing on the main star of the event. They might have thought he looked like the duelist he had been, but he had not shown his face for at least a year, working his ass off to pay for his father's debts instead of signing in for tournaments. Only his closest friends could make the connection between the strange, silent blonde man in black behind Kaiba, and the loud, confident duelist that would never kiss Kaiba's ass even if he were paid a million bucks for it. He would never do anything to Kaiba for less than two billion, in any case.

It was sad to admit, but he must have been forgotten among pro duelists anyway. He could never have beaten Yugi or Kaiba, as much as he wished to, and the public only loved winners, right? He had not bothered to check dedicated forums to see if people still talked about him, never had and never would. It could have been a boost on his bruised ego if they did, but honestly, he preferred live attention, and it would have been no good if conversely, he realized he had impressed too few people to leave a trace.

He had been curious when Isono had mentioned the new  _Duel Links_  project, but he had not asked too much. The app was only in its first stages, and he was fairly certain Kaiba would never consider integrating him into the duelists that could be challenged. Not only had the CEO always shown contempt towards him as a person, but professionally, he had never regarded him as a worthy opponent, much less as a competent duelist. So, for Kaiba, having him in the app would be like seesawing his own leg. Unbearable.

Katsuya had tried to quench the tinge of irritation and sadness he felt thinking of it. No longing, no regrets, that was what he wanted to achieve. He could no longer find the time to duel professionally, but for the moment IKaiba was nice enough to play with him, and it was fun for both of them. He was glad for this at least.

He immediately killed the thoughts revolving around his friends, and how much he missed them. He had work to do.

He came up to Kaiba's side, ready to resume his surveying task here, but his boss nodded to the computer screen, ordering him to have a look at whatever he was working on. Intrigued, Katsuya bent down, and came face to face with a window full of gibberish – code, he realized, but still gibberish to him –, a picture of himself, and an alignment of cards composing a deck, a red-eyes black dragon deck by the look of it.  _His_  deck?

His gaze snapped to Kaiba in shock, but the brunet's eyes remained riveted to the screen. A million questions swam in his head, like why was there his deck on display in front of them, why did it look like it was important enough to be displayed, and why  _the hell_  did his boss want him to come and look at it?

His thoughts must have resounded too loudly in the air, for Kaiba eventually let out a heavy, impatient sigh, and deigned say something.

"Has Isono not told you about  _Duel Links_? And here I thought you had to be informed of everything about me."

It was meant to be taunting, but there lacked a bite about the way he said it. Katsuya did not know how to react to this, but he refrained from replying right away,  _Well yeah, I do, thanks for askin'. I do know everythin', mind you, down to your pants size or the way you'd likely fuck people in all ways possible, but this is not_ you _I see here, is it._

Instead of risking landing on a mine that could blow up his early career, he chose to answer soberly, "Apologies, sir, it appears I know about you better that I have known about myself, lately." He paused, then added cautiously, "I know about  _Duel Links_ , of course, but I must admit I did not think I would be a part of it, and especially not in its first stages of development. It is quite a surprise for me."

Seto's eyes zeroed on the rookie, searching for signs of lying. Surely, an attention-whore like Jonouchi  _had_  to know how popular he still was? Had he not...?

His first impression was that in fact, no, he did not know. There was no mistaking the shine in the man's honey gaze, transfixed on the deck in front of him and discovering it as if it was the most beautiful thing he had seen in his life, and he did not dare think it was true. Maybe it was just that. He had never been known for his wealth, so it was not unlikely he did not possess all the cards in there, some of them being quite recent. The CEO noticed that for the first time since Jonouchi had integrated the ranks of his employees, he could finally see through his carefully molded mask of professionalism and seriousness. His face was open and earnest.

Seto did not know if he was relieved or irritated. He was undoubtedly irritated to be relieved. If he had appreciated – or, at least, acknowledged at all – something about the blonde, it was how easy he could read his emotions and predict his reactions. The former yankee was hot-blooded, short-tempered, and prone to fits if his buttons were pushed rightly. It was refreshing, in a way, compared to the world of hypocritical sharks the CEO had to survive in everyday. The mutt was natural around him. Always had been. No questions asked as to why, it was so simple and obvious it hurt. And it had felt entertaining, unwinding, even.

For Jonouchi, Seto must have been no more than an opponent, a rich snob, and an asshole. He was well aware of that. And for him, the mutt had been an idiotic, third-rate duelist, with no future and certainly no other use than that of duel-fodder in tournaments. This was normal. This was familiar, and controllable. This was how he had liked it.

Then, Isono had butted in and educated the blonde into bodyguard material, and all the codes he had been used to for years, had been blurred and changed without his consent. KC-Jonouchi was tidy, efficient, and worth something – he realized the admission hurt less than he thought –. He liked the change, since he always appreciated someone worthy in his company, and at the same time he abhorred it, because it concerned the damn mutt. Damn him for turning the tables and changing his fate again. Damn him for making things difficult wherever he went.

Seto hated confusion, especially in his close circles and personal life. His closest henchman had a very soft spot for the mutt. Worse, Mokuba of all people had put his foot down in favor of the rookie, along with Isono, all three of them against him. He had briefly lost control. This was unacceptable. And yet, if he simply got rid of the runt like he usually did with nuisances of the kind, he would have had lost again. Nevertheless, he found solace in the fact that when he won, which he would, eventually, he would have deserved a sweet victory on many fields.

With that firmly set in his mind, so as not to forget his priorities again, he leaned back in his chair and finally asked, "What do you think?"

He did not want Jonouchi's advice, really, but he had been civil, so far. There was no point in being snappy now. It could be counterproductive, if he aimed at making him admit defeat. He joined his fingers in front if him and waited calmly.

Katsuya could not believe his eyes. A deck had been made for him – well, the virtual version of him – in  _Duel Links_ , and no one, not even IKaiba, had told him. Why had they not? This was too good to be true.

Part of him thought it was a trap set by his boss to crush what little pride he had left in him as a duelist, and add salt to the open wound to finish him entirely. It would not have been beneath him to do so, if it proved to torment the blonde further. However, it was not logical. Kaiba was a tricky bastard, but they had had so much work recently, that it was unlikely he would have created such an advanced deck in his free time for him, just to play some sort of sick joke. It was too big a loss of time.

Did that mean Katsuya was more famous than he thought, in fact? That he deserved to be in the app? That Kaiba deemed  _him_ , of all people, worthy of being in the game so early in its development?

He wanted to ask. Very much so. He could not, though. He did not want to push his luck and shatter the moment.

Then, the CEO asked him for advice, and his brain blanked out completely, unable to grasp the knowledge that his boss, who was supposed to hate his guts, asked him about something related to a project. True, it was his avatar, but still. It was another first in the row of Seto Kaiba's strange episodes of civil behavior. Maybe he should consult Isono about those.

He remembered he had to answer, if only as a dutiful employee, and he licked his lips while he scrambled to form a coherent sentence.

"It's... brilliant."

_Thanks, Einstein. I think he really needs 'is ego ta be even more inflated._

Kaiba only snorted.

"I was expecting a constructed, professional advice about the construction of the deck, but I guess it means it is nicely balanced in your opinion, too."

He would not blush from shame. Nope.

"Yes... I mean, it is a good basis to begin with."

The brunet was silent for a moment. Katsuya resisted the urge to turn his head.

"Basis. Explain."

Now, Katsuya felt slightly nervous. He had never been asked for advice in dueling. Not by  _Seto-freaking-dueling-titan-Kaiba_.

"Wel-l, I think it is nicely balanced as it is, but... may I speak my mind, frankly?"

He refused to look back at his boss. He would not. A huff, then, "You may."

He took in a long breath.

"To me, it is a strong deck, but it is not personalized enough. Yes, it is a dragon deck, and yes, it supports Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but it is not a deck I would build naturally, were I given the necessary cards to do so, I precise. It is only my humble advice, but I believe you need more cards revolving fully around Red-Eyes, and maybe, why not, some warriors to go with him."

A pause, then he continued, "I heard you will release a new Red-Eyes fusion monster card in a future booster box, obtained with the fusion of Red-Eyes and a warrior. If you plan on synchronizing actual card sales with app events, I humbly suggest you exploit this deck to the fullest with the possibility of fusion summoning this monster with it, and/or turning it into a fully efficient, Red-Eyes deck.

"I do not know about the public's wishes on the matter, but I think that if you wish to integrate me into the game, you might as well associate me with my trump card, and if you want me to oppose a good challenge, a Red-Eyes combo-oriented deck would be ideal. It would resemble me more, and it would be a way to advertise the new booster sales. People would love fighting and using new cards in the app, before they were to buy them. At least, I know I would, but then again, it is only my humblest, simplest advice, and I am aware I am far from being the most representative person of KaibaCorp's public audience."

He finished his tirade in a mumble, as he had not planned to say so much and was beginning to lose confidence the longer he went on. Really, he felt like a dunce. Giving marketing advice to one of the most powerful CEOs in the world, really? What was he thinking.

Silence stretched on between them. Humiliation burnt in Katsuya's stomach, and he straightened up looking straight ahead. He hoped that his face was not too obvious, and that his hammering heart could not be heard.

"My apologies, sir. It was preposterous of me," he said lamely, unable to stand the silence any longer.

Kaiba hummed.

"Quite, but I allowed you to be."

At least he was not mad at him. The rookie glanced briefly, meeting the polar gaze of his boss and locking onto it involuntarily. Kaiba was studying him with such intensity, that Katsuya resisted the urge to squirm. What was he looking for?

Blue eyes blinked after a few seconds, and the CEO went on, "I think you're not totally wrong. Your Red-Eyes is what makes you famous, after all, and a deck revolving entirely around it would be the obvious choice, however, this deck is supposed to be used by an artificial intelligence, and it has to be efficient. Your choices of cards may feel right to you, but sometimes they're not balanced enough, for all the affection you may have towards some. And like you said, you don't possess some of those cards, so your advice must be limited by this. All in all, your suggestions as regards the Red-Eyes Slash Dragon are interesting, and I've thought of them, but the hows and whens of them becoming reality have to be better thought of."

 _In other words, I'm not talented enough, and I'm too poor fer my advice ta be taken seriously. Ta much, boss._  Katsuya bit back his comment and simply nodded in understanding. What else could he do.

Seto noticed the gleam of hurt in his employee's eyes, and even if he knew full well he had only said the truth, going so far as tampering his snark about the blonde's monetary income and dueling knowledge – the why of this was beyond him –, he had to prevent himself from adding that he was, in fact, quite satisfied with his analysis. Apart from the matter of the deck balance, it was quite clever. But it was both to nice and too strange to say, even for him.

Instead of commenting further, he heard himself asking, "Tell me, why don't you duel anymore? You used to say you'd never stop before you were a champion."

Not that it mattered, but the question felt right. He was curious. And when the rookie stiffened, he sensed he had found a touchy subject and wanted to know even more.

"Well?," he pressed on.

Jonouchi's lips pursed into a thin line.

"It is of no importance, Kaiba-sama, I simply could not anymore."

He arched a brow.  _You won't 'Kaiba-sama' me, this time._

"You 'could not anymore'. So, you're telling me your ultimate goal suddenly did not matter so much, after a fickle couple of months away from your friends. Looks like Yuugi was the one to infuse you courage, and without him, you're nothing anymore, much like your determination in life."

That was a low blow, again, but he did not know how to make the blonde spill it out another way. He had no times for more idle conversation.

"You are mistaken, sir, I assure you. It is just really complicated, and I know my life is of little interest to you."

It was, but Seto refused to be told what he liked or not.

"I decide what my tastes and interests are, mutt. You're just avoiding the subject entirely."

"Please, sir, it is a privat-"

"I don't care, really, but it's enlightening to witness how your words tend to be just that, words. Like right now. You're all polite and tidy, but you cannot hide who you are for long, after all. Soon, the street trash resurfaces. It's a matter of time for you to lose..."

"Sir."

Katsuya cut him brutally, his eyes ablaze and his face frozen in stony anger. The contrast was startling, to be honest.

Seto raised an eyebrow, refusing to be phased.

The rookie spoke again.

"Kaiba-sama, with all due respect, my private life is mine only, and I would appreciate it if you stopped probing. I did  _not_  give up on my dreams, but life happens, and right now I cannot continue dueling like I used to do. You just cannot duel when you starve to death, or when you have no roof over your head, and I have enough self-esteem to choose my priorities and live decently before I consider the rest."

It was, more or less, the polite way to say  _Not everyone is a rich snob with bucks sprouting out of his virgin ass, so I'd like to eat before I buy cards and go play_ , and Seto understood the message very clearly. He would not say he was impressed, but the rookie had managed not to blow a fuse, as he had been expected to do. That had to be noticed.

Meanwhile, Jonouchi might have caught up with what he had just done, and his face crumbled into a mildly shocked expression, much to the brunet's satisfaction. He still had some synapses available to make him realize his mistake, it seemed.

He found he preferred when the blonde was easy to read. And some fieriness was not too bad, either. Without giving him the time to beg for his forgiveness, the CEO stood up swiftly and strode to the door. He turned around to find the rookie frozen in place, mixed emotions he could decipher with just a single glance. The other male was internally terrified, certain he would be fired.

Seto was tempted by the idea, but decided against it. He wanted to play a little more, before he did. This was getting entertaining. Moreover, he found much more appealing the prospect of Jonouchi resigning out of his own volition, after he had been reduced to a weeping heap of misery. This way, the brunet would have won on all fronts.

He opened the door and jerked his head to the side.

"Stop acting like a kicked puppy, and come with me."

This shook Jonouchi out of his paralysis, and the rookie quickly caught up with him.

"Y-yes, Kaiba-sama."

Seto smirked. Things looked up for him. He would find his fun, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!
> 
> Next chapter will be very funny to write, I think, with IKaiba, Seto, and Jono :D I will have a nice time trying to manage all three of them without having the building explode (and there will be the intervention of another character too)!
> 
> I will do my best not to bee too OOC, promise!


	14. Chapter 13

Seto strode to the lab, not looking back once to check if Jonouchi followed him. He knew the rookie would be there. The prospect of discovering a piece of a top secret project in development would be too tempting to pass up, especially if said project included him. And in any case, he was still his employee and was obliged to follow. So no point in checking. No point in thinking about it either, no matter how thrilled the brunet felt – to his utter dismay, but it was not worth dwelling upon –.

He made a beeline for the first pod and lied down in it in a swift motion, switching on the _Neurons_. When he was ready to get transferred, he spared a quick glance towards the general direction of the blonde, noticing his confusion and a spark of recognition in the his demeanor. Right. Last time they were here, it was when Seto's former associates had imprisoned him into his own virtual RPG world, and the nerd gang had had to go help him. Looked like the mutt did not remember too fondly of the pods. Who would? They were primarily aimed at messing with your brain, after all.

He nodded towards the terminal that would connect his mind to the Duel World. He would give his employee something to do to occupy himself, at least.

“Keep tabs on this while I'm in there,” he ordered, before he initiated the program and felt himself drown.

The scenery had been refined and NPCs greeted him placidly as he got uploaded in front of the shop once again. He had visited the place not so long ago, and yet the small differences were very visible to him. Maybe this was a sign that it would not be like last time. He would burn the entire vicinity if it were.

A memory of the last fiasco flashed in front of his inner eye and his insides churned with something strange for an instant, but his reason quickly killed whatever it was. Soon enough, to his immense satisfaction, he found the debacle did not affect him so much now that he was back there. Of course, Yami would not pop up in front of him, as he was currently being checked one last time, but Seto realized he did not care whether the virtual replica of the pharaoh could be challenged again one day or not. He was slightly bothered that they had lost precious hours of work to revise the duelist's coding, but that was that.

He had more important matters at hand, anyway. He noted that, for maybe the first time since he had known the mutt, he was the one seeking him out for a duel, not because he wanted to throw him a bone to pick, but because he actively wanted to challenge him. The irony of the situation made the corners of his lips quirk up. He expected the result to be worth the effort, at least.

And there he was. The fairly recognizable form of the former _yankee_ came into view near the fountain, precisely were Yami had been last time. Seto frowned. Irritation mixed with the after-taste of past disappointment resurfaced, but he did not care for that. He took a deep breath and rationalised. Maybe the developers had chosen this particular spot for characters to spawn, before they scattered freely into the virtual world. It was easier to control for the moment, as characters were not proved fully reliable yet, and it would be changed in the next steps once they had been approved. It could not be a sick joke on him. No need to fret.

He relaxed as his brain found perfectly understandable reasons for the strange occurrence, and the CEO squashed the uneasy feeling as irrelevant. In any case, Jonouchi was there, and he had a duel to play. Seto did not let himself expect too much, but he could not help it. After the terrible performance of the virtual King of Games, this had to work and he would stubbornly cling to that certainty. He knew no one more predictable than the mutt. It was bound to work as it should.

The retained design for the duelist was the appearance he had until the destiny duel, which felt both normal and yet completely foreign. The virtual blonde wore his signature green uniform and old beaten sneakers, and his fiery gaze turned to Seto with a cocky gleam in them, striking the CEO with an odd sense of familiarity and strangeness. It was as if he met an old acquaintance after years of thinking they were dead. As if the teen in front of him was a ghost. And yet he felt right, as if the actual Jonouchi out there, with all his smooth and classy countenance, was the fake one.

Seto sneered and corrected his thoughts. He would not let himself be confused. This was Jonouchi, but a fake one, and that was also Jonouchi, the real one. End of story. He was in here to challenge the virtual other to a duel, beat him, and vent off his growing frustration with the world. Nothing more.

Once his duel disk deployed, the blonde reacted and his face scrunched up in disgust.

“Kaiba!,” he growled, “knew ya'd be there ta bug me! I'll crush ya big time!”

This simple tirade, recorded and recomposed after the former yankee's usual taunts, filled Seto with a rush of adrenaline despite the fact that it was the dumb mutt. It had been a long time since he had had some normalcy in his life. This finally felt right, and only now did he realise how much he had craved it.

He shuffled his deck and put it in its slot with a knowing smirk.

“I would like to see that, mutt. You can try.”

Jonouchi snarled and took his distance. The duel arena materialized around them, with smooth holographic lines surrounding the area and cutting them off the rest of the world. Their life points counters blipped into life, and the dedicated slots for monsters, spells and traps shimmered faintly on the floor between them. Seto was at least satisfied that this had been correctly coded. Then the coin was flipped and decided he would go second, and he could draw his first hand.

His smirk grew. He already had a Blue-Eyes, with a possible combo to pull out with it on his first turn. He could not wait to see if the third-rate duelist he was facing, for all his shiny deck and calibrated AI, could resist him long enough to be funny.

 

_Twenty minutes later_

 

They were on their third duel, and Seto had yet to win. He did not really mind, though, to his complete, stunned incredulity. If anything, he felt thrilled and more determined than ever. It had been so long since he had felt that alive, even though he knew it was not real, that he was unable to stop now.

The first duel had been quick, with Super Jono pulling out a series of combos so perfectly orchestrated that the defeat had not even tasted sour for an instant. He had exploited the synergy of his cards and the speed-based rhythm of duels in _Duel Links_ , in a way that had left Seto powerless to respond. The CEO had not stood a chance, but he found he felt more impressed than angered. He had to admit that he was not accustomed to having only one main phase and three slots for each type of cards. His last tries against Yami had not been enough for him to develop and test out his strategies, for he had not had to apply any strategy with the level ten deck of the former avatar. By the time he had taken the whole thing back in stride, his life points had already been wiped out. His opponent was taunting him with it, though he had kept his bragging at an acceptable level, and Seto had let him. For once, he would recognize that it had been well played. The bot looked way better than the actual duelist even.

The second duel had been a combination of tough luck and still perfect dueling from his adversary. Seto's hands and draws were not systematically shabby per se – the coding prevented that –, but he had not drawn the right card a the right moment, and his strategies had been countered with nice moves from Super Jono, who used his deck's potential to the fullest. It was satisfactory to finally meet some resistance, even if coming from the third-rank mutt. More than that, it was fun. Seto was entertained, and he would certainly not give that away. His blood pumped faster in his veins, and he grinned. He felt great, and it had taken a month of developing a blonde punk to achieve that, but well. He did not look a gift horse in the mouth and surfed on this high while he could.

It had been a close defeat, and the stakes were now higher. He knew the decks. He knew the AI's standard strategies. He would win this round and relish in Jonouchi's discomfiture and anger. After all, the blonde could be talented and lucky all he wanted, he was best when defeated and reduced to a laughable heap of furious barking. This would be the icing on the cake. So far, he had not disappointed, and he could not begin now.

With a swift combo, Seto's Blue-Eyes blasted the other's dragon in a blinding flash of light, and Super Jono's life points crashed to zero. After letting out a scream, the virtual duelist panted and wheezed, while the victor stood proudly, ready to take in the final reward.

When he got a grip on himself again, the blonde straightened and sighed.

“I lost...,” he said dejectedly, his eyes filled with sadness and disappointment. Then, without missing a beat, an amused glint replaced all trace of them, and he added, “But I s'pose it was meant to be. I'll be sure to win, next time!”

He grinned dumbly to the CEO, who stood there staring at him, incredulity painted all over his face. It sounded so surreal at the moment. It was as if the programme had suddenly mistaken Kaiba Seto's six feet, lean form for Mutou Yugi's measly five feet and spiky hair. Which was stupid. It had recognized him before, why the change now.

Glaring, he fired back, “I highly doubt that, mutt. You were meant to lose and never win again. I doubted I would get more from you, anyway.”

He tried to ignite some standard reaction from the teen, something that would assure him that it was indeed Jonouchi, albeit the virtual one. His developers had only used quality recordings and data on the selected duelists, they could not have missed the blonde's way of acting around Seto. And they had not, since the previous interactions had been as expected until then.

But no. The damn brat simply tilted his head questioningly to the side and blinked.

“Well, you can't know. I've won two times!”

Again with that goofy, happy smile. Not even proud or bragging anymore. For a moment, Seto refused to believe the damn AI dared treat him so unlike the real, predictable Jonouchi. It was a farce. This could not happen. This had to work as it should. The contrary could not happen!

“Hey, you alright?”

Oh, now the punk was concerned. Maybe he was _pitying_ him. Seto reeled at the thought. He would accept pity from no one, especially not from a stupid AI who could not work properly.

“I'm fine,” he hissed, glaring at the unmoved duelist, readying himself again. “I want another duel.”

The blonde snorted, honey eyes flashing with challenge. That was more like it.

“Alright, bring it on!”

 

_Ten minutes later_

 

The AI was definitely acting up. The last two duels proved it. Super Jono had won the fourth, teasing lightly on Seto's true skills, but he had sounded... polite. No, not polite. He was more bordering on indifferent, joking almost out of obligation. Worse, when the brunet had won the fifth, last duel, the other's reaction had been cordial. Accepting. Dismissing. Like he had not been defeated by his self-designated archnemesis. Like he did not care about him at all, whereas normally, it should have been the other way round. The CEO should have enjoyed his acting like his fallen opponent was not worth the dirt under his feet, he should have been delighted to reaffirm his authority and superiority. He should have had _fun._

And yet, all he had was a cold dismissal, and polite goodbyes. Super Jono kindly told him they were finished with their duel, so he had better do some other things, like standing there staring at the fountain. He turned away from him. Ignored him. Like he, too, could not be bothered to stay and fight until the end.

The realization sent the brunet's mind into haywire. This could not happen. Atem had already had the gall to abandon him, and his avatar had been nothing less disappointing. That cowardice had been the proof of the ancient king's self-righteousness, but Jonouchi was nothing like this. He was too damn straightforward to run away.

The real Jonouchi could not resist rubbing Seto the wrong way. He would never cease being his dumb, upstart, fiery, fighting self. In the order of things, in every universe, every dimension, every version of himself, the third-rate duelist would never be anything else than what the elder Kaiba knew he was. Unbending. Relentless. Daring to the point of foolhardiness. And exasperatingly, unmistakably _here_. Always coming back, and never, ever going away, even for all riches in the world. He would have rather died than backing from a challenge. The idea could not cross his empty head. He was a permanent thorn in Seto's side. He had to be. Had to...

He wanted to reach out to the duelist and shake him so hard his teeth would fall off, but he refrained from doing so at the last minute. This was a virtual person, an image. There was no use abusing it. It meant nothing more than what its – fucking, stupid – program dictated. It was a waste of time.

But out there, in the lab, there was the actual mutt. That damn, irritable, educated monkey, who dared hide himself and act as if he had always been the perfect employee. Jonouchi Katsuya was not himself. It was not funny anymore. The brunet realized that, if he did not do anything right this instant, he would lose the last normal person who could match his dueling skills. That was unacceptable. He would not allow it, and if he had to thrust some sense into that thick dog skull himself, then so be it.

With a roar, he initiated the disconnection process, his blood thundering in his ears and his breath short. His brain began scheming for possible ways to get the mutt back. To have him as himself again. To shake him out of his tiresome act of tasteless submission.

Punching him would be ineffective. The former _yankee_ was used to physical violence, so common in his world that it did not affect him anymore. It would be the same for verbal abuse, especially now that he had become a bodyguard-in-training. Seto did not know what sort of training the blonde had undergone to get his nerves of steel, but he now seemed impervious to barbs. How bothersome.

_Come on, think._ There had to be other options, out of his zone of comfort. Maybe even out of theirs both. At this point, Seto was willing to try on anything. He had to hit a sour spot, somewhere unexpected, somewhere no one would have thought him of going. What could offense the mutt so, that he would blow a fuse in a matter of seconds? _Think, for fuck's sake._

The _Duel Links_ world disintegrated in a myriad of pixels. A loading screen showed him the progression of his disconnecting, while he racked his brain for a strategy. Once he would be out of the pod, he would face Jonouchi. He had to take him by surprise, leave him no time to react. The blonde was a seasoned fighter, he had to take his street smarts into account. Enter his living space quickly, impose and conquer in a heartbeat. He had to unsettle him. But how...?

Just when the bar hit hundred percent, an idea popped up, so crazy that it made his head spin and his resolve harden. There was only one way to disconcert that punk enough to ignite his wrath. The plastic lid of the pod opened with a wheeze, and Seto sprang into action.

* * *

Katsuya was miffed. How was he supposed to keep tabs on his boss, when all he could read was gibberish-gibberish-some more gibberish-gibberish-motherfucking gibberish? Was there even Japanese somewhere in a corner of this mind-crushing alignment of nonsense?

To his immense, debilitating relief, a window opened itself in front of the indecipherable stuff, and IKaiba provided him with an actual log of event in palatable, coherent sentences. Bless Ra for his brilliant friend. He fired a quick 'thx' on his phone, before he followed the chain of event with mild interest.

It appeared that Kaiba was enjoying himself, somewhat. Or that he was getting stubborn with anger. Duels came one after another, and in total his boss played five duels in about thirty minutes. _Huh. Guess he_ really _needed to duel. Question is, why against a virtual version of me?_

This made no sense to the rookie. The only opponent Kaiba had ever acknowledged was Atem, and later maybe Yugi. He, for his part, had always been small fry in the eyes of the brunet, so it was more logical that he waited for the King of Games to be fully operational, was it not? Frankly, he had come to accept the CEO's quirked way of dealing with his ego, since anything lower than Atem in terms of skills were worthless, period. It was so simplistic a logic that it was not even offensive. And even if it was not actually like this, Katsuya did not care to go deeper.

That aside, he could not help swelling with pride when he saw that Super Jono won three duels out of five, meaning that the 'mutt' was not so much a street rat, after all. Well, the duels had been won by an AI, but that was not the point. It was purely symbolic. Maybe he could convince IKaiba to record the duel log for him to keep? That sure would be nice. It was not often that Kaiba Seto lost at his oh-so loved game.

Also, those Red-Eyes cards looked brilliant. The rookie wished he could afford them one day. Maybe after he moved, he could indulge in some shopping down the card games aisle? Grandpa would sure be glad to see him, it had been a long time since he last paid the old Mutou a visit.

The screen flashed with a new command, and his attention reverted back to it. Kaiba was disconnecting. So soon? Was he rage quitting? Was there any Kaiba-tantrum to clean after?

The answer would come soon. The pod opened harshly, and a feverish Kaiba sprang out, so quick that Katsuya did not register the movement until the other was on him. Like, _literally_.

And in a blink, he found himself with six feet of barely contained fury pressed against him. And the impossibility to breathe.

Never in his tasks had it been specified that he could have had his nose pinched and his mouth covered with his boss's. For once in his life, the rookie was shell shocked.

His brain shut down. It would be of no use for a while.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've made it! Yay! :D  
> Hope you liked it!


End file.
